Ruth's Awakening
by Rose5790
Summary: When the daughter of an infamous pirate captain is found beaten and on the verge of starvation by Jack Sparrow, he not only takes her under his wing, but discovers that she holds the secret to her father's hidden treasure. Possible romance in later chapte
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Jack rested his palms upon the railing of his beloved ship, and looked out to the departing sun as it slowly, but surely sank into the mouth of the horizon. With Cotton at the wheel, he was now free to contemplate the great expanse seas of which he sailed without the distraction of his overwhelming duties as captain.

The chatter of excitement was also ripe in the airs within the Pearl. With the capture of a large, opulent- looking pirate ship just hours before, the crew could not chase away the excitable thoughts of their pay with the immense cargo found in this magnificent craft. Jack smiled as he thought back to the way the crew of that ship recoiled at the sight of him, the most notorious, infamous pirate captain of their era: Captain Jack Sparrow. This was even frightening in the eyes of fellow pirates, and the title itself curled his smile into a rather proud smirk.

And then he thought back to the very distinct figure that his crew had found. It wasn't currency, or a sword fitted with precious stones, nor valuable dresses crafted with the finest of materials….

It was a girl.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Ruth Celine Porter was not typically one to quickly resort to brash actions, but in her current situation, after the shock had slightly worn off that she was actually aboard the ship of Captain Jack Sparrow, and that he was only the most notorious and infamous pirate captain of her era, she really had no choice but to do so.

She sat huddled in a far corner on bended knees, where the shadows of the room protected her from sudden sight, and continued to stab at the wall with a rather dull letter opener. Hopefully, because the corner was not usually in clear sight, and, because it was sheltered by several other items, she could perhaps create a small opening where she could escape his cabin, and then…well…she hadn't really devised a convenient plan to used against the rest of Sparrow's crew, but she planned to cross that particular bridge when she came to it.

At sixteen, Ruth was quite mature for her age, but knew when it was appropriate to express a rebellious side of her. Well, if truly necessary at least. Even at sixteen, she considered herself a feminist, but a quiet one, for she was aware of consequences if she was hasty to spill a few angry outbursts against the oppression of her fellow women. As her long waves of dark hair fell into her eyes, she desperately hurried to push them back behind her ears, all at once dodging the tender areas of her bruised cheek.

Her thin arms could only hammer for so long, and she finally sat against the wall, panting and trembling from her act of desperation, and the result of her mess if the captain discovered it.

She felt her body grow limp from exhaustion. It had been a long day. Emotionally and physically spent, she felt tempted to wait to meet the captain, and perhaps negotiate, if, of course, her fright did not get the best of her, and if this pirate was as fierce and unyielding as she imagined. Frankly, she could not bear any more stress, whether it be emotional or physical, and as she contemplated her weakness, she glanced down at her worn limbs, marked from the consequences of her "disobedience" aboard the previous ship, and felt tears inch their way to her eyes. Every part of her seemed to ache, even her throat, from her many hoarse, shrill cries for mercy and of agony aboard The Sea Charmer…

Suddenly, she froze as she heard a small but audible thud upon the floor outside the cabin. Her breath began to quicken, and her palms grew slick with sweat. Her mind raced with the possibilities that awaited her as the steps grew louder, and she felt more trapped than she had ever in her confinement. Fear hit her like a tidal wave, and as she tried to blink back oncoming tears, she only felt them rapidly fall from her eyes. She stood, unsure now of where to go or what to do in the brief second she had before the door opened. There was nowhere to go. There was nothing she could do.

The door opened.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

If fear had not gripped her so tightly, she would have released a scream, and frankly, she was thankful that she didn't.

In fact, she did not get to be acquainted with the captain beforehand in the rush of colliding events that swept her so quickly to his cabin, and she almost gasped at his presence.

He was nothing like she imagined.

With lightly brown eyes that were rimmed with smeared kohl, it was easy to become entranced with the emotion of eyes, rather than the erratic movements of his arms as he strolled in. He also bore an interesting, but rather strange accessories, like a bone protruding from his thick, dark dreadlocked hair, and various beads and charms threaded throughout. Despite his eccentricity, he was handsome, and immediately when entering, he gave her a small, though charming smirk.

"Well, well, well, so you're the little lass we found, eh?" he said with a sort of growl, despite his cheeky grin.

Ruth was almost amused by his appearance, but still cowered into her corner, already dominated buy fear. She hoped that the letter opener was out of sight.

Jack's smirk slightly faded as he remembered her past circumstances aboard the Sea Charmer, and at the sight of her still form, her widened eyes, and her blanched face. As the light began to truly allow Jack to get a good look at her face, his eyebrows bunched together in concern. The bruise upon her cheek and her tear-stricken face finally came into view as well as her sickly form.

Ruth's voice seemed to be stolen from her as Jack studied her, and she felt her confidence wither under his gaze. She felt a whimper escape her lips.

He stepped toward her and slightly inclined his head.

"Sweetheart, what have they done to you?"

With his seemingly compassionate actions, she felt a sudden wave of lightheadedness hit her, as if after her mind sensed his harmless nature, it decided to allow her body fall into a fully vulnerable state. The fear of this man drained her last bit of energy, and her knees became strangely rickety.

When Jack finally approached her at a distance at which a friendly conversation could be carried, she felt her dizziness disable her legs, and she collapsed into darkness. Jack caught her before she could hit the ground.

………………………..

When Ruth awoke, she took a moment to take in her surroundings, and register that past events were not of a nightmare, but reality. For some reason, she chose not to move for some time, and she reminisced on the moments before her blackout.

There was a man. A pirate captain. Jack Sparrow. His grin. His gentle growl of a voice. The depth of his eyes as the light danced off of them as he moved closer. And then…

She decided to rise. It was no wonder that she was hesitant to move. Her limbs seemed to rejoice at the touch of a bed. A _bed. _

She took the sheets between her slender fingers, pondering if its texture was actually real. She had not felt this kind of comfort in quite some time. It was only about one week since she had been taken from the ship en route to Port Royal.

It's wise to take into consideration that one week upon a pirate ship can feel like an eternity.

As her awareness became sharper, she noticed a small piece of paper lying on the bedside table to the right of her. With much effort, she leaned over, took the paper, and unfolded it.

There's nothing to fear of me, lass. I am henceforth assuring your safety onboard in my presence and in the presence of my crew. Although I must mention that this does not apply for situations that take place outside our acquaintance and your welcome, whether it is an act of nature or of some other force.

Whether you like it or not, your wounds will be examined and treated.

Expect me at sundown, and please drink the water that I've left for you.

Don't worry; I am aware of your escape route that you attempted to carve from my wall.

Sincerely,

Captain Jack Sparrow

Ruth took no time to wonder how on earth she could have found herself in the rare presence of a formerly educated pirate, and snatched the mug from the table. After she had removed almost every trace of moisture from the cup, she set it down and reread the note.

A pirate's word, as her late father repeatedly lectured, could rarely be trusted and accurate, but how strange it was that James Porter was himself a legendary pirate captain.

For as long as Ruth could remember, this fact stirred up both feelings of disgust, but at the same time the bond between father and daughter, love and forgiveness.

At the thought of her father, Ruth felt her heart split wide with emotion, and she fought to keep tears from escaping her brown eyes. It was in fact the recent death of her father that brought her back to Port Royal to be placed in the care of her mother, and it was the terrible illness that struck her father that brought her to the Cayman Islands to fill his final days with as much comfort as she possibly could. It seemed that now, the potential consequence that might await her now from Jack's discovery of her "carving" was numbed by her intense mourning for here father.

Sniffling, she lay back down and silently, freely, allowed her sorrow to express itself through her flow of fresh tears.

………………..

When, through the light spilling through the small window slowly darkened, Ruth tried to prepare herself to be, as Jack said, "examined", but the thought of being touched almost frightened her.

Because it was not yet dark when Ruth awoke, the confining space of the cabin tempted her to step outside and taste the fresh Caribbean air, which was just a twenty second walk away…Although, she feared the captain's reaction to her venture outside, and decided to remain firmly stationary within her comfort zone.

She sighed and began to study the smaller bruise near her elbow, which was caused by a simple request for a short rest from her overwhelming workload upon the Sea Charmer.

Soon enough, just as Jack had claimed, the gradual thud of his boots signaling his arrival, and he walked in to find Ruth sitting atop his bed, her large eyes fixated upon him in such a way as if he had just grown another head.

With him, he held a small box, which he set upon his desk.

"I truly expected you to be fast asleep, love," he said, a side of his mouth curling into a grin, "But," he continued, "I hoped you would be up. That _is _my bed after all."

At this, he chuckled, but Ruth didn't even release a twitch.

He then took the box from the desk, and approached Ruth. She didn't move, nor speak.

Tentatively, he sat beside her.

"Do ye ever speak, lass?" he said gently.

Ruth nodded.

"Then do ye have a name?"

Ruth tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, "It's Ruth," she whispered.

"Well, Ruth," he continued, "If you for some reason didn't know, my name is Captain Jack Sparrow…_but _I'd rather we not bother with formalities. Call me Jack."

She nodded.

"Do ye feel better at all?"

She smiled, and nodded again, "Thank you for the bed and for the glass of water."

"Oh, it's fine darling. Don't worry," he assured her, his voice returning to its normal, serrated nature as the air between them grew less tense.

After a moment, Ruth looked up at him, and his eyes followed.

"Jack?" she asked almost nervously.

"Mmm…?"

"I'm sorry, I …I really was very frightened of you."

Ruth had not the slightest inkling of where her somewhat irrelevant statement originated, but at that moment felt obligated to express her apology of her misunderstanding of him. As she waited for the reply of this strange person; this fierce, though tender pirate, she felt another batch of tears arise.

It was here that Ruth could no longer suppress her gratitude for her uncommon circumstances, to God, and to the man that possessed such a unique heart.

She suddenly burst into childlike sobs, and threw her arms around his neck, allowing her body to empty itself of emotion.

This took him by sheer surprise, and Jack flinched. After a moment of her clinging to him as if for dear life, Jack tried to share a comforting word with her, but was afraid to try and overpower her voice.

He instead began to tenderly rub her back, and as her sobs slightly softened, he then tried to calm her with his words.

Ruth didn't seem to notice his attempts to bring her into tranquility, and cut into his when her voice wasn't choked with sobs.

"Thank you so much…thank you…I…I haven't been shown mercy like this since…since…I can't thank you enough…they beat me, Jack…they didn't take advantage of me…but they beat me…they locked me in a cell…they threw me in darkness…I felt so alone…I can't tell you how alone I felt…"

Jack allowed her to vent the horrors she witnessed while aboard the ship, and Jack listened, but could not reply. He strangely had never witnessed having an abused young girl aboard, taken of course, from another plundered pirate ship, and wasn't sure how to answer her as she whispered these events close to his ear.

As Jack allowed her head to rest upon his shoulder, he found that he had almost missed a set of peculiar words:

"…_They didn't take advantage of me…"_

_Could she possibly know of…? _

Finally, as her sobs transitioned into deep, even breaths, he gently patted her on the back, and waited until she was calm enough to compose a stable sentence.

"Ruth?"

She pulled away from him, and carefully wiped the underside of her eyes, "Yes?"

"I couldn't help but notice that you mentioned something about your sojourn aboard the Sea Charmer. You mentioned that neither the captain nor the crew ever took advantage of you. How could you possibly worm your way through that?"

He suddenly seemed eager to hear of this miracle, and eager to know how such a young, proper-looking girl could have ever gotten her hands upon a particular "secret-weapon" against her foes, one that is almost dead, and strictly exclusive to the community of pirates.

Ruth quickly regretted sharing this with Jack, and wished that it was _then_ that she could experience her blackout and escape formulating a difficult excuse to this. There was no way she could buy precious time, and felt that there was no use in trying to avoid him.

"Well, Jack, my father was, in fact, a pirate. And being a pirate, he knew of a phrase that would come in rather handy to me if I ever found myself in the opportune situation. He told me of these precious words: Femina Sententia, and instructed me of when and where to speak these words in order for them to be deemed valid by The Code of Pirates. If a woman is lucky enough to know this phrase, she has the power to choose whether she may work as a servant to cook and clean for the ship, or to give herself to the captain as a slave…with either choice, though, beatings are inevitable."

Jack, of course, knew this, but nodded in understanding.

"How often did they…hit you?" he asked once his narrowed eyes loosened.

Ruth sighed, "Not terribly often, but when they did, it was merciless." Because she felt drained of her tears, she felt emotionally stronger, and her will to cry seemed to fade for the moment as she looked back on her haunting memories aboard the Sea Charmer.

A moment of silence passed, as if to contemplate something, and when Ruth averted her eyes back to Jack, she couldn't find anything more to say to him. She had almost forgotten about the incident between her and the wall, but felt much too exhausted to dive into another difficult topic.

Jack immediately sensed her weariness, and patted her shoulder affectionately. He looked into her eyes with a concentration that signaled a determination to make a solid point to her.

"Lass, I want ye to know that despite yer previous experiences, I want to make this second journey for you as comfortable as I possibly can. I promise you now that I will not, and I will never deliberately harm you or allow my crew to harm ye. Consider me a guardian to ye until we can find your next living arrangements…savvy?"

Ruth smiled at not only the promise, but at his whimsical last word: savvy.

She giggled, "Yes…savvy," she said enjoying the feel of the word rolling off her tongue.

Jack returned the smile, "I believe that that was one of the first true signs of happiness that I have seen you express upon my ship."

Ruth giggled again, "Yes…I believe it was too."

Author's Note: I'd like to apologize for not combining chapters 1 and 2 so that they weren't each ridiculously short chapters. Sorry! Also, Femina Sententia is Latin just in case you thought that I just pulled two strange words from my imagination: Femina is Latin for woman while sententia is Latin for decision.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

If one imagines a young woman who lay fast asleep, to gently flutter her eyes open when awakening in such a way as to provoke wonder at this graceful entrance into the morning, this thought should be stopped before it can develop into an accepted truth.

This is not how Ruth awoke the next morning.

In fact, as the bright morning light streamed in hard, concentrated ribbons, as the window was in need of cleaning, and illuminated the room, Ruth's eyes snapped open, and then closed tightly at the ridiculous amount of glaring light. She groaned, and slowly rolled over, pressing her face into her pillow.

The day before had not been very easy on her, and as the memories of trauma, of fear, of learning, and of revelation quickly flashed through her mind, she wanted nothing more than an extra day of sleep. She then realized as she looked back on the previous day, that she had not had a proper lunch or supper, and it was no wonder then that she hardly had any energy.

It seemed that on cue, this had began to dawn on her aching body, and she felt a deep rumble from within her stomach. It seemed that only food was on her mind now, not the fact that her hair was mussed from sleep, or that her clothes were, for lack of a better word: wretched.

As she sat up on the bed, her mind began to wander back to the time after Jack bade her goodnight, and left her to sleep. He claimed that he needed to mind the ship, and even as captain, she thought, he volunteered to take the less prestigious duties of the ship.

She then looked to the cabin's sofa, which she noticed now held a pillow and a pile of bundled blankets, and sighed as she remembered how Jack would not allow her to take the sofa, even when she persisted.

"Don't be silly, love," he had said, "You need it more than I do."

………………….

Jack scanned his eyes over the abyss of the ocean, looking away only to avoid the glare of the sunlight, and drew his compass from his coat. As he ran his thumb over the smooth, flawless top of the device, he felt the strongest wave of nostalgia for his old, tattered compass.

Though it seemed inanimate, its eerie way of predicting and accurately giving the direction of the holder's desired item or person made it appear as if it had a mind of its own. The compass held a great part in the reason of his mammoth success in his illegal industry. It was essentially his partner in crime.

But yet, a strange series of events took his beloved accomplice from his hands and thrust it into the vast mouth of the sea, where it was never seen again. Of course, he had leapt into the sea, which now had become his temporary enemy, but try as he might; the compass flew into the darkness of the ocean faster than he could swim. Even several other crewmembers attempted to retrieve it, but declared the depth of this particular part of the ocean to be much too deep to venture into.

It was as bright as a Caribbean day could be that day, but to Jack it was only as dark and bleak as the arrival of a hurricane.

Tia Dalma, an eccentric shaman and its creator and giver still to this moment has not the slightest idea that Jack has lost it. Nor does she have the slightest idea that now his course is set for her dark, mysterious homeland to retrieve another.

The only thing now that kept Jack's hope from its fullest for her generosity now was a possible pay. The voodooist would not even think twice as to hand over another one of these precious tools for free, as she could possibly believe that the wily captain was lying. The only thing that Jack could do now would be to ask for an estimate…and the potential price churned his breakfast within his stomach in sheer anxiety.

Because he had bargained for the compass, there was no value in terms of currency that he could use as reference. It was all a matter of finding something beyond Tia Dalma's grasp that he could obtain for her.

Ruth suddenly leapt into this itinerary, and his grip tightened upon the compass. He sincerely hoped the girl would not mind a short stopover.

After contemplating his plan, Jack stuffed the compass within his coat pocket, for the mere thought of his old compass only made him sick with yearning.

……………….

After Ruth had wiped the buildup of crusty matter from the ends of her eyes and had attempted to finger brush the ends of her long hair, which fell right to almost the end of her back, she exited the cabin, and stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of the ship's back.

The glorious sunlight, which had only aggravated her in the cabin, only left her in awe as its rays illuminated the backs of the sails and peeked behind one as the sail moved steadily in the lazy breeze, and it seemed as though the giant wings of the ship were the masses of billowed clouds that hung seemingly heavily in the Caribbean sky.

The breeze that had moved the sails gently ruffled her hair like a reassuring parent, and she smiled as she was given a respite from the harsh sunlight. It was only on a ship that she could realize the beauty of a typical Caribbean day. The beauty of the ship and the sea seemed to bring her back to her childhood, when her father would take her aboard, but for only short sojourns at a time.

With the incredible steadiness of the ship as it sliced through the ocean waves, and the slow, minimal rocking of the ship, Ruth felt that she rode upon a ship that knew the very heart of the sea, and rode to its rhythm, making it seem like a part of the ocean…

"_You see them, Ruthy?" her father would say as she sat upon his lap._

"_Dada, what are they?" Ruth had never seen creatures so strange as they basked in the sun, with their bodies as sleek as a fish's, but their faces crafted like an animal's._

"_They're seals, Ruth. Listen to their call."_

_The air filled with barks as this community seemed to comfortably go about their day, even as any other creatures would have possibly reached insanity with the level of noise. It sounded like some sort of pandemonium or anarchy, but many of the creatures still managed to lay motionless upon the roasting rocks that jutted from the sea as they enjoyed the blanket of heat that the sun provided. _

"_They sound like puppies, Dada!"_

"_They certainly do, Ruthy."_

_Ruth cupped her small hands, "Arf! Arf! Arf! Arf! Arf!"_

_Her seal imitation only seemed to blend into the cloud of noise above the community. One seal appeared to be looking in her direction. _

"_Look Dada, they're talking to us!"_

_Fearful of losing his child's happiness, he decided to play along with his young daughter's game._

"_Well, I say! Let's be polite and answer them, shall we?"_

_Ruth nodded eagerly and cupped her hands again, "Arf! Arf! Arf! Arf! Arf! Arf!"_

_Captain James Porter placed his own strong hands over his mouth and proceeded to bark like his daughter, even as the rest of his crew looked on, bewildered… _

"Enjoying the view, love?"

Jack's throaty voice brought Ruth from the depths of her memory, and gasping, she looked to her side to see Jack with his head tilted upwards, his mouth slightly ajar, as if trying to see what Ruth was so engrossed in.

"I…it's just that…your ship is, and the day…it's beautiful."

Jack brought his gaze to her level and smiled, "I must say that even after years upon this ship, I'd have to agree with you, Ruth. It's just that nobody ever stops to marvel at the glory of this great structure like you did now. I suppose that I'd have to now believe you when you said that your own father was a pirate. You seem to have an uncanny connection with my ship. Love of the sea…of a ship. It must be in your blood."

Ruth smiled at this, and looked to the ground to avoid the sudden burst of sunlight in her eyes.

"Yes, I've always seemed to have a strange fascination with the ocean and its inhabitants. I think that was how my father wanted to raise me…he wanted me to grow a deep appreciation for the sea because it is a gateway to adventure, but even though man has traveled through many of its paths, the ocean itself is so vast that there are many more that are yet to be explored."

"Did your father teach you that lesson in particular?" cocking an eyebrow in curiosity.

"No," Ruth said, grabbing bits of her hair that strayed from behind her ear, "but even by his actions it was clear as to what he wanted me to learn. Before he died, though, God rest his soul, he did tell me that life is much too short to waste, and that seeing the world beyond your homeland can set you free from boredom, from emptiness, and from ignorance. Since that moment, I feel that my true source of happiness in this world is traveling."

Jack narrowed his eyes, but not just from the glare of the sunlight, and nodded as maturity and wisdom seemed to radiate from her as she spoke. The way she composed herself reminded him of someone…someone he spoke to only years ago, but seemed so distant now, like a word hidden in one's mind that they have suddenly forgotten.

"I hope I didn't recover any unwanted memories by bringing up your father's death, love," he said gently, "I know that you've been through enough as it is."

As the day fully awakened, Ruth noticed that this seemed to summon crewmembers to the deck, and their rush seemed obvious as they hurried about their duties, eager to start the day as early as possible.

Ruth averted her eyes back to the captain, "Don't worry, Jack," she said, "I do miss him dearly, but I think that talking about my father like this only brings up the happier memories I have of him. That's all I have of him now, Jack. Memories."

……………….

"After breakfast, I'd like you to meet my crew and my first mate if you don't mind, love," Jack said as they weaved through barrels and crewmembers and took a different set of stairs down into the mess hall.

"Not at all," she replied briskly as they entered, and Ruth's growling stomach only worsened as the smell of cooked fish filled her nostrils.

Jack then led her over to a table and pulled a seat for her, "Now I also hope that you won't mind being alone, as the rest of my crew has finished their meals, and I have a bit of unfinished work to attend to."

"I'll be fine, Jack," she said.

"After you finish though, I would like you to meet me at the helm…you of course do know what the helm is, don't you?"

"Of course," she said.

"Alright then," he said clapping his hands together as to conclude his speech, "now to retrieve your breakfast."

He then disappeared behind a doorway in the corner and shortly returned carrying a plate of breakfast with a fork and a mug of water.

"There you go, love, please enjoy, and don't hesitate if ye need anything else," he said, and smiled as she thanked him gratefully and sincerely.

As soon as the captain left her, all notions of proper table manners vanished, and she began to ravenously dig into her food, only stopping to bring the mug up to her lips for water. Aboard the previous ship, the only food that she ever received were, sometimes fresh meals if the captain felt generous, but many times leftovers and scraps, and even though it was usually enough to satisfy her hunger, it was frankly, quite disgusting.

When she had finished, she closed her eyes in contentment, and allowed her food time to digest before she went up to the deck.

…………………

As Jack gently guided The Black Pearl through the dazzling streets of the ocean, he noticed his first-mate from the corner of his eye.

"Mornin' captain," Joshamee Gibbs said gruffly, but with a strange bleakness about his voice.

"Mornin' Gibbs," Jack replied lazily, and turned to see him nervously twisting his hat in his hands.

"Somethin' wrong, Gibbs?" Jack said, squinting in concern.

"Well, I…uh…the girl we found, aboard our last find…she, uh, she didn't look too well. You know, it's bloody bad luck to bring a sick girl aboard. Is she doin' alright now?"

Jack sighed and turned his eyes back to the sea, as he nearly felt a rush of excitement as he began to believe that Gibbs had felt true concern for the young girl, "Don't be such a bloody superstitious fool, Gibbs. Yes, she's actually quite fine now. It's just that aboard that ship had a bit of a scare, you know they had clearly beaten her, and the last thing she needed was to be told that she would be boarding yet another crude pirate ship."

Gibbs frowned at this, "But I thought that-"

"Well, well, there she is now," Jack said hastily, eager to cut into Gibb's nonsensical claims about women bringing bad luck onto ships when he had quite a prosperous run when Annamaria was onboard.

As Ruth approached them, Jack welcomed her with a grin, "Ello' there Ruth."

Ruth also greeted Jack and glanced somewhat nervously toward Gibbs, who had led her to Jack's cabin the day before.

"This, love, is me first-mate, Mr. Gibbs," he said extending a hand toward the tensely smiling Gibbs, "but the crew prefers to simply call him Gibbs. You may do so yourself."

Ruth smiled, "It's very nice to meet you, sir."

Gibbs simply muttered likewise and bade Jack goodbye before heading back to resume his duties. Ruth frowned confusedly in his wake.

"I suppose he doesn't care much for my presence," she said, her eyes downcast and slightly solemn.

Jack himself was surprised that even Gibbs wasn't softened by her charm, "Oh, don't you worry about the old codger," he said reassuringly, "just to clear the air though, he's not particularly fond of having women aboard…he thinks it brings bad luck to the ship."

Ruth nodded, her eyes bright with understanding, and with realization, "Oh yes, I remember my father mentioning that old superstition. He of course wasn't a superstitious man, but his good friend was…" her voice trailed off as she stopped herself from relinquishing too much information about her father's status on board his ship.

Jack nodded curtly, and proceeded with divulging to her another reason for her meeting with him, "Now, the reason I wanted you to report to me again was to make certain travel arrangements with you…firstly, where were you headed before the Sea Charmer intercepted your ship's path?"

"We were headed to Port Royal."

Jack's eyes widened at this uncanny coincidence, "Well, love, it seems that you're in luck! Two good friends of mine reside in Port Royal, and after this stopover, I was intending on paying them a small visit. It seems that our arrangements can simply… work themselves out, eh?" he said, flashing her a toothy grin.

Ruth's smile broadened, "Why, that's fantastic, Jack! It seems that my circumstances have been changing for the better since I came aboard."

After they had discussed this beautiful similarity, Jack then called Gibbs over, who sulked back, and he ordered him to man the wheel while he tend to other "miscellaneous chores". With his hand upon her shoulder, he led her the main deck, and called the remainder of his crew over.

"Listen here, men! This here, as you might have heard to realized, is our newest addition to the ship! I know ye all may be excited to see a young woman, but under no circumstances are you to touch her in…don't be stupid men, in ways that you know are inappropriate or uncalled for, or harm her in any way. Is this understood?"

After a raucous "Aye," Jack turned to a stunned Ruth, "Feel any more comfortable?"

"Jack," she said, a short, nervous laugh underlining her voice, "I could have just declared Femina Sententia…"

"Yes," he said, "You could have, but I don't want you working on me ship just _yet_. My curiosity and interest in your upbringing has led me to proceed in testing your nautical knowledge. Not only has my curiosity brought this upon you, but we are going to be together for…" afraid of confessing the true estimated amount of time their journey would take, he improvised, "…a while, and at one point or another, I would like a bit of your assistance. I want you to tell me about every major piece of equipment used upon a ship…starting with this part of the deck."

Ruth tapped quickly into her memory as the game started, deeply hoping that she remembered everything her father taught. She had not utilized this information for quite some time, and a wave of anxiety washed over her as she thought of accidentally switching the term of one device or area for that of another. This certainly wasn't a test her life depended upon, but she strangely hoped to impress Jack.

Jack lead her over to the first task, and gestured toward the ropes holding the whipping sails as if they were rowdy black stallions, rather than a fragment of the ship.

"Now, I'm quite sure that you know what the sails are, but do you know what holds them in place?"

Ruth narrowed her eyes as she associated the image of these sturdy ropes with a memory from her past…

"That," she said in a matter-of-factly tone, "would be the downhaul."

"That's correct," Jack replied, "the downhaul is an especially useful word to know."

"What about the front of a ship?"

"The bow."

"The back?"

"The stern."

"How about the bottom levels of a ship?"

"The bilge."

He then pointed to the corners of the sails, which bore holes within the glorious sails that were used to insert ropes.

"The clew."

Then, Jack led her to a lever of some sort that Jack said was used to maintain the rudder's direction.

Ruth cocked her head, "The whipstaff."

"Would you happen to know the device used to lift the anchor?"

"The windlass."

Ten questions and just as many short rounds of applauses later, Jack nodded his head, and ended his test.

"Very impressive, young lass," Jack said, "You've truly outdone yourself. You may be more knowledgeable then several of me crewmembers," he concluded with a chuckle.

"Well, it's easy to pick up on the nautical language with a pirate as a father, I suppose," she said modestly.

Jack shrugged at this and turned to the helm. Gibbs threw him a look that read "impatience" clearer than the Caribbean sea.

"Well love, I'm afraid that I must be returning to me duties, but you are more than welcome to stay in my cabin for the time being. I have a few books that you could read. Or perhaps ye can take a little catnap. Whatever suites yer fancy."

Ruth looked toward the stairs descending into the cabin area, "I think I'll catch up on my sleep, Jack."

"Very well, then," Jack said with a grin, extending his arm to her, "I'll have to escort you though, dear, being that I, in fact, have the key. Shall we?"

Ruth smiled and looped her arm in his, "By your lead, Captain Jack Sparrow."

……………….

The night sky, which twinkled with the light of millions of stars, cast a milky light onto the sea, illuminating the crests and apexes of the gently churning Caribbean waters. The moon threw a stripe of its, soft, but brilliant essence onto the sea, and Ruth felt a strange longing to jump in and bathe in the soothing light, like one might long to find the end of a rainbow in order to find a pot of gold.

As the rest of the crew swung their glasses of rum about with them and tipsily danced to various songs, which seemed incomprehensibly because of their now slurred voices, Ruth stood quietly at the railing, trying to drown out their voices with the beauty of the plentiful night sky.

She studied the light sliding over the gently rolling waves, and mused on the miraculous event that followed her leave of her captors. She had fallen into the hands of a good pirate.

As much of a paradox it seemed, it existed. She truly believed that her father was the only respectable pirate captain that had ever lived.

It seemed that as soon as she had stepped foot onto Jack's Sparrow's ship, her circumstances have only brought hope…and not to mention certain conveniences. It seemed too good to be true. She expected a rough voice to wake her from a pleasant dream and order her to begin preparations for breakfast. She pinched her arm. She wasn't dreaming.

A miracle was at work.

Yet, she had had conflicting feelings aboard this ship, and as they returned to haunt her, she retrieved a piece of paper from the pocket of her shirt, which Jack had provided her with, and held it, gazing at it as if it were a precious stone. It was not just any piece of paper, and it was in some ways a family heirloom. Given to her beside her father's deathbed, her dying father had described this paper as the secret to his last store of treasure upon this earth.

Because of the situation, she did not dare to greedily open it, but her father had told her to open it after he had died, and at a time she felt truly ready to take on the challenge. She ran her thumb over its cover, the fold crisp because to this day it remained unopened. Even if the hope of escaping her captors and finding her father's treasure could have compelled her to open it…it had only helped her to keep it shut. She only wanted to obey her father's dying wish, and at that time, a feeling of readiness did not seem clear.

Here, she was not only free from abuse, but she also had access to a ship. Her father's ship had unfortunately been burned down by the Royal Navy, which had forced him to retire to the Cayman Islands.

As soon as she came into possession of this treasure within itself, she felt that she could not bring herself to show anyone, let alone a pirate. If she did decide to negotiate with Jack, she would have to trust him on a level that was almost unheard of. She carefully placed the paper within her pants pocket. Why, then, if trusting a pirate to such an extent seemed unspeakable, did she feel suddenly ready to open it?

As she gazed into the night, tears surfaced to her eyes, and she prayed and she hoped that Jack was really the man his first impression had made him to be.

Author's Note: I truly hoped you enjoyed Chapter 4. Please try and review if you can everybody! Your reviews are more valuable than you think. And don't be afraid to be honest! Honesty is the best policy, you know! I can try to do Chapter 5 and soon as I can, but unfortunately, summer reading is a major drag this year (All the King's Men is a really long book!).


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Three days later…

As the light from the late afternoon dimmed ever so slightly to signal the beginning of evening, Ruth sat with her legs tucked under the cabin's main chair and worked to untangle a stubborn knot at the end of her hair. It is because fingers don't make very good combs that she had purchased a new comb from The Black Pearl's last stop.

Kingston, the industrial heart and capital of Jamaica, had been a like a breath of fresh air for her legs, a golden opportunity to explore an area outside of her limited space onboard the ship. Not only had he ship stopped to allow the crew to burn off a bit of energy, but also to pick up supplies.

Staying rather close to Jack's side, she warily ventured through the bustling marketplace, one in which someone could easily find themselves swept away within a crowd of people. When Jack stopped to ask for directions, Ruth's eyes wandered over to the adjacent stand. There, sitting upon a woven cloth, was a beautifully crafted wooden comb. With hair that currently seemed to house rats within itself, it seemed to call out to her.

As Jack finished, he noticed her fascination with the table, and that she held the smooth body of a wooden comb in her hands.

Jack walked over and inquired the price.

"Oh no," said Ruth suddenly putting it down like it had the plague, "Please, Jack…it's fine. I couldn't possibly let you do that."

"Love…," he said, pulling a money bag from his coat pocket, "As a woman, you need to learn to let men buy pretty things for you. Besides, your hair is very long, so I won't worry about it going to waste now, will I?"

And that was that, after a healthy stream of "thank yous", the comb was hers.

As she reflected back to this memory, which had taken place only hours ago, she found that she had only a small part of her hair now to detangle. Jack had knocked on the door earlier, telling her that only an hour or so remained until they would be arriving. Although Jack had not told her what exactly would be happening, he only divulged that he would be visiting a friend on serious business. He didn't reveal anything specific, and because of this, Ruth decided that if had wanted to, he would've and that it would be wise not to press the matter.

A knock suddenly interrupted her thoughts. She set the comb on the desk, and opened the door.

"Hello Jack."

"Ello' there Ruth," he said as he entered, taking a quick glance about his cabin as if to find something. Ruth stood at a distance, her hands clasped behind her back.

"Are we almost there?" she asked.

"Yes, as a matter of fact…we are." Jack seemed to be in a trance, and a look of sheer concentration wrinkled the tops of his eyebrows.

"Are you looking for something?"

Jack averted his eyes to her, "Yes…but…," he inclined his head toward her, "could you perhaps tell me first-mate that I've run to find something and that I'll be up in a minute?"

Nodding obediently, she ran up to the deck, and carefully scanned the hectic area, until she saw Gibbs guiding the wheel.

After Gibbs had acknowledged her presence and answered her message with a tepid grunt, Ruth dodged the crewmen who shouted brief messages and orders to one another in preparation to drop anchor and retrieve the spare boats, and threw her gaze to an island, which, by its closeness, was evidently their stop.

She found herself so entranced with the tropical essence of their destination that she didn't realize that she had approached the railing and was now grasping it with a strange firmness, as if afraid that its beauty would lure her to jump into the water...

The island looked almost free of human contact, until she saw a rather large opening toward the center, with greenery of all sorts twisting this way and that. Directly below it, a trail of water claimed a pathway into the darkness of the jungle that lie below its wall of foliage.

"_What sort of business could this possibly be?"_ she wondered as she gazed into the island's intimidating "mouth".

…………………

As the small boat inched its way into the heart of the jungle, Ruth shuddered as the dank air brought goosebumps to the tops of her arms.

"Here, love," Jack said, as he began to shrug his jacket off, "Why don't ye take this?"

"Are...are you sure, Jack?"

"Oh, don't worry, dearie. The cold here doesn't bother me."

With the heavy jacket draped about her shoulders, Ruth's eyes leapt from one part of their path to the other at a rapid, somewhat anxious pace. The darkness seemed strangely ominous, and as she rested her eyes upon a gnarled, mammoth tree, she thought that she saw a figure dart out of sight. The only light that seem to find its way through the shield of various shaped leaves and meandering branches only came in thin beams, creating the illusion of glowing raindrops, while in some areas, the light held more space, and softly lit and shone upon the waxy, silky surface of the leaves.

The strange hybrid of a bayou and a jungle was no doubt wondrous, but oddly familiar for some reason…

Jack looked straight ahead, contemplating his decision to allow Ruth to tag along. Jack knew that with a pirate as a father, she seemed to have an adventurous streak about her, and feeling that after her journey with him, her next guardians would strictly limit this freedom. Ruth certainly wasn't a stupid girl, but the fact that she was a woman would not help to fill her longing to see the world… The least he could do was satisfy that as much as he could. Besides, he could easily have another crewman watch her as he guarded the boat.

Finally, Tia Dalma's dwelling came into view. Although the wooden structure was modest, it also looked sturdy and somewhat cozy as she noticed a rich light illuminating one of the rooms.

As the boat approached the ladder, Jack stood, clearly eager to see his friend.

"Ruth, you wouldn't mind staying in the boat, now, would you?"

"Not at all," she answered.

"And don't fret, love," he added, "This area is perfectly safe despite its…dark demeanor…"

Ruth nodded.

"Alright, then," Jack barked, after he had climbed the short ladder, and now stood atop the platform, "You all are to remain outside until told otherwise, which does include you, Gibbs…" he ordered to a exasperated first-mate and to the rest of the crew that had come, who all sighed in disappointment.

"You are only allowed to leave the boat, if, and only if, an urgent and truly serious emergency arises, which I sincerely doubt, but if it does happen to occur, would ye all be so kind as to knock upon the door instead of trying to catch my attention through the windows? Tia Dalma seems to have a intense fear of trespassers, and she tends to place traps in unexpected places during the day…"

"What…kind of traps, Jack?" Ruth asked somewhat timidly.

Jack's face seemed to become slightly distorted, as if reminiscing upon a memory when he had fallen victim to one of her traps, "Trust me on this, lass, I really don't think you'd like to know."

As Jack turned his back on them, he muttered something under his breath, "And I don't think you'd believe me if I told ye."

………………

As Jack entered the shack, a strange unidentifiable smell slithered into his nostrils, and the hard glare of the candlelight that struck the many glass containers that hung from the ceiling caused him to squint.

When his eyes adjusted to light, the woman finally came into view. There, standing next to a desk holding a jar stood Tia Dalma in all her flamboyancy. A slow grin crept onto her darkly painted lips, and she casually left her latest activity to approach her visitor.

"Well, well, well," she said softly as she deliberately sashayed toward him, "…if it isn't de man that so unfortunately lost his compass to the de sea."

Jack seemed to be so enticed in Tia Dalma's strangely seductive composure, that it took him a moment to register her words.

"What?" he asked in mock disbelief, cocking his head.

In a sudden movement, Tia Dalma's hand shot up to slap him, but brought her hand to a sudden halt as Jack sharply turned his head to the side, gritting his teeth to prepare himself for the impact.

The voodooist chuckled eerily as Jack slowly turned his head back to her, a perplexed look upon his face.

"You really believed that I would slap ye, Sparrow?" she said with a playful smirk.

"Well, knowing my luck with women…yes."

Tia Dalma's chuckle lingered on her lips as she walked to her table, and she ran her slim fingers along its surface, absently playing with the various charms and figures that sat there.

"I must admit that it was…quite a disappointment when I finally sensed de absence of your compass," she continued, her accent heavily underling her words, "but it is only because that giving a compass such powers is not easily done."

"But it's still…possible, no?" Jack inquired, alluding toward the notion of receiving another.

"Of course," she said, looking up from her desk, her grin returning, "But I'll be blunt...I will demand a heavy price, and it won't only be for your clumsy mistake."

Being the overly proud man Jack was, he did his best to fake a small smile.

"So," Tia Dalma said, breaking an awkward silence that could have existed if it weren't for her intervention, "did you bring anyone else along…" She craned her neck in an attempt to see through her window.

"Well, yes, but just a few though this time," he replied as he stuck his hand in his pockets, confirming the presence of his potential pay. Tia Dalma strolled to her window, and what she saw struck her with sheer surprise. There, sitting in Jack's boat, sat a young girl, and even at an older age, and not to mention, with her head in the opposite direction, she knew all too well of her identity…

As she spun around, Jack glanced up from his search, and frowned at her peculiar expression. She suddenly seemed to storm toward Jack, and when she had stopped excessively close to him, she spoke in a voice thick with disbelief, even when her uncanny instincts pointed to her answer.

"Do ye have the slightest idea of who is sitting in your boat, Jack Sparrow?" she said in a low, though equally demanding tone.

Jack looked toward the window, realizing that the only new figure he had brought along was…

"Ruth?" he said.

She seemed to have recovered a slight grin, perhaps from realizing Jack's rather convenient advantage of having such luck.

"But…" she breathed, "did she ever mention her last name?"

This seemed to now strike Jack as odd. In her youth, he didn't seem to think that asking for her full name was necessary. Although, Ruth was no longer a child, and Jack felt lost for words as he wondered how he could have ever overlooked something so significant.

Suddenly, his eyes widened as he realized that her surname was not the only piece of information concerning her origin that he had failed to notice. It felt suddenly peculiar that any girl could declare Femina Sententia and be allowed to choose her fate.

"Wait a second…" he said, as this revelation dawned on him, "she claimed that she declared Femina Sententia when I rescued her from her last stay…but the girl had to

be-"

"The child of a pirate captain," she finished, smirking as Jack's eyes glazed over with shock as he gazed out the window as if in a trance.

"I knew there was something uncanny about her words," he said, "But how-"

Through with Jack's little knowledge in this policy, she gestured her arm to the doorway with a flick, "Go get the de girl, Jack," she said, a twinkle of excitement in her eyes, "I believe that we might have room for one more in our negotiations."

………………

When Ruth climbed the stairs and approached the doorway, she felt a tight knot form within her stomach as she pondered her purpose in those few seconds. As soon as she entered the house, though, she gently gasped as the golden light given off from the candles creepily illuminated the trinkets and various containers hanging from the ceiling and the range of preserved animal appendages, which were suspended within strangely shaped jars.

The whole area was littered with the most exotic, but yet disturbing objects. Ruth could not help but wonder what this person could possibly specialize in. When Jack's "business partner" came into view, she almost froze as another déjà vu overtook her. The environment outside seemed too vague to recover a memory, but the woman, the unique objects scattered about, and the golden light of the room seemed to give life and detail to a distant memory.

"This," Jack said, leading her to the woman, "is Tia Dalma."

"But don't you worry about introducing yourself, Ruth Celine Porter," she said with narrowed eyes as she took in her older counterpart "because I know exactly who you are."

Even as she sensed the familiarity of this place, her surprise left her almost speechless, she struggled to compose herself, "You…how do you know?"

Jack's gaped at the discovery of her father, "It all makes sense now, love! Your father's Captain James Porter! I knew you reminded me of someone I knew…but I could never put me finger upon it," he then studied her as he mused back to her previous speeches, " I swear, love, you sometimes act just like im'."

Tia Dalma laughed and approached her, "Your father came to me on a very important errand, and it happens to concern the very slip of paper that's in your pocket."

Ruth stuck her hand into her pants pocket almost protectively, "My certificate?" she asked breathlessly.

Tia Dalma held out her hand, curling and flattening her fingers to signal her desire for Ruth to hand it over, "Let me see it."

Glancing nervously at Jack, whose eyes seemed to bore into hers almost suspiciously, she retrieved a small piece of paper from her pocket, and placed it in Tia Dalma's outstretched hand. She gently lifted a corner of it, a grin gradually spreading across her face in time to the paper she unfolded.

She glanced at Ruth with mischievous eyes, "I remember when your father brought you to get it," she said, "You were very little though."

She then turned to Jack and held up the certificate by its worn corners, "Since I know you are a man that many times can overlook Femina Sententia, I'll take the time to explain. This certificate can only be given to an eminent pirate captain with his child at hand. After it is signed by me and de father…or mother in rare cases, then the child is allowed to declare Femina Sententia, but only if she has the certificate in her possession. Although de certificate can allow the child to choose whether to give her body or her cooking and cleaning abilities to the ship, this cannot keep the crew from hurting her, whether it be by abuse, by torture, or by murder. Usually, when the crew comes across a woman, though, they are not quick to kill her…especially if the woman can come in handy to the crew."

"Then anyone could simply forge a certificate then and be entitled to use it?"

The woman sighed and placed a fist upon her hips, "Do you take me as a fool, Jack Sparrow?" she said, her voice dripping with exasperation, "Of course…the certificate bears qualities that set it apart from others. Wait here."

After giving the two a quick glance, she left the room, leaving the two basking in an uncomfortable silence. Ruth suddenly felt nervous to leave Tia Dalma's dwelling, and find herself to be dependant on the woman or on others to spark a conversation between the two now that Jack knew the truth about her. She feared that because of her tremendous amount of lying, Jack would hesitant to trust her word again. She hoped that Jack would understand that she only lied to protect her father, and his legendary treasure, but now, the luck she had with dodging a suspicious interrogation from Jack would have gone to waste. It was clear that the reason of her presence was because of her knowledge of the treasure…

Jack almost opened his mouth to speak, but when he saw Ruth out of the corner of his eye, he reasoned that for the moment it perhaps wouldn't be wise. With the new faraway look of apprehension dancing nervously upon her eyes and her flushed face, he decided that it was best to leave her be.

Tia Dalma soon returned carrying a pot at arm's length, and in it, a plant so strange looking that although Jack had come across countless wondrous beings and objects in his past travels, he could easily label this as one of the most frightening, though oddly beautiful specimens he had encountered in his lifetime.

The plant, like the certificate, was a brilliant, distinct shade of orange with stalks that grew out from the base like the arms of fireworks. The leaves bore curled tips that looked almost golden, shone so brightly, that it could have easily passed off for the precious stone itself. Green thorns dotted the large stem of the plant in the same curled manner as its leaves. Ruth couldn't help but gasp.

"This," Tia Dalma announced proudly, "is none other than the Acidus Acies, or, if you prefer the translation: Sharp Keenness."

"Why, though, would such a name be given to a plant?"

Tia Dalma grinned, "That's one of the reasons I brought im' out…just watch."

She then picked up a stick, and slowly brought it inches away from the plant's stem. Instantly, one of its curled thorns, which eerily resembled the horns of a very intimidating breed of sheep, shot out like a frog's tongue, and grabbed hold of the stick. Tia Dalma tightened her grip upon the stick as the plant seemed to fight with her to take it. The thorns of the plant almost seemed to act like fingers.

"Come a little closer," she said, "and watch the end of its thorn."

Cautiously, the two inched closer, and craned their necks.

"What is it doing?" Jack asked.

Tia Dalma's hand quivered as she struggled to keep the stick in place, "There it goes. See it?"

It soon became obvious as the thorn pierced it and a small trail of golden liquid oozed from around the puncture of the stick.

"That is the highly poisonous venom of the Acidus Acies," she clarified, "The plant does that to defeat its predators or to kill its prey."

Ruth gazed at the plant, and almost regretted wondering why the plant was labeled as it was, while her fascination almost compelled her to move closer to the manic creature.

"Bloody hell," Jack breathed, "its like an animal."

"It is one of the most unknown of the plant kingdom," Tia Dalma said as she finally released the stick, and watched it drop it into its small territory of rich soil, "because I am the only one who has the Acidus Acies."

Jack and Ruth's trance was suddenly broken, and they brought their heads up to her level.

"What?" they questioned dubiously in unison.

She nodded, "The plants are only native to my area, and because we have such a valuable use for them, they are fiercely protected."

"And this is the plant that you use to make these…certificates?" Jack said, picking up the certificate that she had placed upon the table.

Tia Dalma confirmed this with another nod, "It is the only way that the certificate can be proven accurate, although it is a very tedious process to make them," she said, "because we must be extremely careful in handling them. In order to kill the plant without destroying its assets and unique qualities to make the paper, patience and skill are both required.

You don't have to worry about the poison, though," she continued, "the pouches that hold the venom are carefully removed."

She gently stroked the pot with the back of her fingers, "It's much too bad that you can't tame the little beasts, " she said, "they would certainly make interesting house pets."

………………

"So," Jack said the two as they sat around Tia Dalma's table, their hands gently wrapped around their mugs of tea, "I'd like to hear more about Ruth's part in our negotiations."

With her head cradled in her hand, she smiled, "Do you know anything about your father's treasure? The one that he left for you?"

Ruth averted her eyes into the pool of tea that sat motionless in her cup. There wasn't going back now, the two seemed already aware of what her past had to offer them now, "To be honest, I don't…" She then explained to them her situation with the letter her father gave her before she died, and the two nodded occasionally throughout her speech.

"You are a wise person, like your father," Tia Dalma said bluntly.

"I know that you are aware that I'm here on business," Jack said to Ruth, his face no longer playful, but serious, "But I think that's time that I explain to you exactly what business I'm attending to here." It was then his turn to enter his own speech about his compass and how he lost the precious thing, never failing to mention why the compass was so valuable.

Ruth nodded throughout as well, but with an air of disbelief.

"And so the compass you lost…a _compass_," she said, emphasizing the fact that it was in fact an inanimate object, "could tell precisely what direction the holder's greatest aspiration lies?" she finished in a rather sardonic manner.

Jack and Tia Dalma both slowly nodded.

Ruth cocked an eyebrow, and nodded her head as if trying to accept this, and then seconds later looked away, placed a hand over her mouth, and strived to suppress her laughter. Jack inclined his head, and coerced a smirk, gently fingering the stubble growing over his chin.

"Something funny, love?" he said, trying to force a twang of annoyance from his voice.

"Not…entirely," said Ruth, her giggles evolving into laughter, "but if you two wish to use some sort of code to cover the true item that you've come here for, you could at least have made it a little more believable. I'm not a naïve child you know."

Jack shook his head at this, and shared an irked look with Tia Dalma.

"Well, child," said Tia Dalma, "do you know exactly what I…specialize in?"

Ruth's laughter suddenly faded, and she began to nervously, though softly, tap her fingers upon the table, and stole a glance around the room.

"Well…" Ruth began, eyeing a jar of what looked like compressed bugs, "I don't believe that I can truly say…"

"I'm a voodooist, child," she said.

A thick silence fell upon them for a moment.

"Oh," Ruth said awkwardly, "That would certainly explain a lot."

Jack then slammed his hands upon the table, but not too loudly, just loudly enough to break the unpleasantness of their current conversation, "Right then," he declared, "moving on…"

Tia Dalma and Ruth happily cooperated, "Let's discuss your father's treasure," Tia Dalma said, "You don't know what he left you?"

Ruth shook her head.

"Well," she began, "he left you quite a bit…but not so much in coins, mind you, in precious stones…"

Ruth looked expectantly at her, while Jack lifted his mug to drink his now tepid tea.

"Opals."

Jack luckily hadn't finished sipping his drink, because if he had, he would have sent a spray of tea all over a stunned Ruth _and_ Tia Dalma.

"_What_?" Jack exclaimed, "You mean to tell me that her father left her a store of _opals_?"

"I didn't stutter, Jack," Tia Dalma said.

Jack, now even more stunned then Ruth, set his mug down, a grin spreading wide over his face.

"That being said, child," Tia Dalma said, returning to the heart of the matter, "what I mean to say is that I need several opals from that store, but trust me," she paused to say, touching her arm reassuringly, "you will find that you will have many to spare…and since your skillful captain here has not only a able-bodied ship, but a crew to match, and enough experience to hunt for treasure, you will not only be able to find your treasure, but you will also have more than enough to pay Jack Sparrow for his services. That pay will be in turn used by Jack Sparrow to barter for his precious compass, so in the end, everybody wins," she finished, throwing her hands up in the air.

Jack Sparrow nodded somewhat solemnly, and stared at Ruth, who held the power to ultimately decide if the proposition would be agreeable.

He slowly put his hand out, and touched Ruth's wrist, "There's no pressure, love. If you don't feel right about this, I can manage."

Ruth smiled at Jack and Tia Dalma, "To be truly honest, Jack," she said, "I don't feel that there's much to lose from this. Ever since the day I found that I discovered that you weren't the man I expected you to be, I've felt that I could trust you with this. In the past few days, I even contemplated telling you about my father's treasure," she glanced between the two, her grin gradually becoming more and more certain and confident, "You've done so much for me Jack, even when I failed to declare Femina Sententia," she chuckled, "it's the least I can do. I…I think I'll do it. Yes, I trust you Jack," she then stood, "I'll do it."

Jack jumped from chair, unable now to contain his happiness, "You really will love?"

"Yes, I will," she exclaimed, tears of joy springing to her eyes.

He then laughed, looping her arm through hers. They then proceeded in dancing about the room, laughing as freely as children would.

"Were going to be rich! Were going to be rich! Ha Ha! Ha Ha! It's true, it's true!" they sang, waving their arms about, "I'm going to be rich," Ruth sang, placing her fingertips upon her chest "I'm going to be rich!" Jack sang, doing the same.

They paused.

"You're going to be rich!" they exclaimed in unison, Ruth pointing to him, while Jack pointed to her. They then burst out in a sort of wild, manic laughter, each bending over to clutch their waists as the laughter tightened their stomachs.

Tia Dalma shook her lowered head in disbelief, and placed her own fingertips upon her forehead. She then stood, "Can we please return to our business now!" she shouted, trying to overpower their raucous laughter, her hands now upon her hips.

When their laughter finally subsided, they gradually regained their composures, and Ruth gently worked the wrinkles out of her shirt while Jack crossed his arms over his chest.

"You still haven't opened your father's letter, which, as you mentioned, contains important information about the treasure's whereabouts," she then raised an eyebrow at Ruth, "if you did happen to bring it along, do you wish to open it here, or upon the Pearl?"

Ruth and Jack exchanged glances, as if trying to communicate by thought.

"I don't want to cut our meeting so short, love," Jack said to Tia Dalma, "but I believe that it would be best if we opened it aboard the Pearl. I don't think I should keep the crew I brought waiting for much longer or else they might cause a riot. It's been a long day, too."

Tia Dalma nodded in agreement, "Very well then," she said, her mischievous grin returning, "but first, I want to fetch something for you Ruth."

She then entered her storeroom, and shortly returned with a small pouch.

"Wait until you're back on the Pearl to open this," she said, placing it in Ruth's cupped palms, "Hopefully, you'll remember them. You seemed to thoroughly enjoy them as a child."

"Thank you," Ruth replied graciously, as she put the bag in her pocket.

"Well," Jack said, "It was good to see ye again, love. I truly hope that we'll find success in this little hunt of ours…"

"Oh, don't you two worry," she replied to his comment, " I have faith in both of you."

They then exchanged embraces and goodbyes, and exited Tia Dalma's home. The crew looked up from their various tasks that they had resorted to in their boredom, like picking at the dirt in their fingernails, or practicing knot tying with the ropes on the floor of the boat, and their eyes brightened with sheer relief at his return.

"Thank you so much, Tia Dalma," Ruth turned to say to the woman, who stood behind her with her hand upon the doorknob.

Ruth thought that she saw tears surface to her eyes. Tia Dalma simply nodded and placed a hand upon her shoulder, "Your father would have been so proud of you Ruth, you know that?" she said.

………………

As the boat slowly rounded a corner, Ruth glanced back to see the lights of Tia Dalma's house gradually become smaller, until they seem to resemble stars in the night sky.

She then turned to the lights that finally came into view as the boat passed cracks between twisted branches that twinkled from the Black Pearl, the ship that suddenly not only became her shelter, but her new home…at least for the moment.

As the lights became brighter, and as the glory of the ship became more apparent, she gently smiled, and turned to Jack, who gave her a genuine, but almost tired smile. She suddenly realized her own exhaustion, and placed a hand over her mouth as she yawned. She couldn't wait to find the comfort of a bed and then awake to a new day, to new opportunities, and to the beginning of a new future.

**Author's Note:** The hunt is finally on! What kind of information will Ruth's dad give her to find the treasure? Find out in Chapter 6!

**Important Note to the Reader: **I don't know if I should label this story a_Romance_ just yet. Do you guys think that it would be inappropriate to allow Jack and Ruth to share a romantic relationship in later chapters? I'm just worried that their age difference will spark some controversy. I really would like Ruth's age should remain sixteen. I'm not sure if the movie producers intended to make Jack a bit younger than he is in real life… POTC took place in the 1700's right? Their life spans should have been quite significantly different to our expected life spans… I just don't want to weird myself and other people out! What do you guys think?

YAY! I hope you guys enjoyed that! I liked writing this chapter. I'm sorry that I have to get past all these explanatory parts before I can get to the really action-packed parts, but I hope that I'm making it enjoyable to read for you guys nonetheless…PLEASE, please, please review if you're a registered member of the site, pretty please, with sugar on top (the writer here makes excessively huge Bambi eyes)? Your reviews mean so much to me.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"_So this is de child?" Tia Dalma asked Captain James Porter, who tried to persuade his young daughter out from behind his legs._

"_My one and only…" he answered distractedly, trying to clutch Ruth's little wrist, "Come on now, darling, Tia Dalma just wants to meet you."_

_He turned around and dropped to his knee, finally grasping her hand, and shook his free finger at her, "What did I tell you about being rude?"_

_Five-year-old Ruth looked fearfully up at the woman, finding her painted lips and strange layers of dress quite intimidating as her eerie room. She pouted, and turned back to her father, shaking her head as if turning down a choice of food..._

_The captain sighed, and turned back to Tia Dalma, "I'm sorry…" he said, "You know how children are..."_

_Nevertheless, Tia Dalma grinned, "Wait here," she said, putting both of her palms up to signal them to stay._

_She shortly returned, carrying a small bag, and approached Ruth. She too got down on bended knee. The young girl stood motionless, and gazed at her with wide, apprehensive eyes, tightening her grip on her father's hand. _

"_Put out your hand," she said gently._

_Ruth looked to her father as if for permission, and he nodded. She obeyed._

"_Do you like chocolates?" she said, lightly shaking the bag in her hand. _

_Ruth smiled, and nodded. _

"_Then I'm quite sure you'll like these," she replied to this, and poured a small pile of the sweets into Ruth's hands. The young girl then excitedly picked up one of these perfectly round chocolates, and placed it in her mouth. For a short second, only the familiar taste of the chocolate could be tasted, but the, another taste could be detected, and it was wonderful, distinct, and unlike anything she had ever tasted._

"_You like them?" Tia Dalma asked, her grin spreading into a wide smile at her obvious enjoyment of them. _

_Ruth nodded again. _

"_They're chocolate covered berries," she continued, "But the berries are only found here, so it's something new for you to try, eh?" she finished with a chuckle. _

_James gave Tia Dalma a grateful smile, and turned his eyes back to Ruth, "What do we say?" he asked her expectantly._

"_Thank you," Ruth said bashfully._

"_You're quite welcome, child."_

_As Ruth quietly ate the rest of her sweets, the two others conducted the business necessary to validate her certificate, and when Tia Dalma finally confirmed the end with a stamp of her seal, James took Ruth by her hand, and led her to table. _

"_Today, Ruthy, you're going to receive something quite special," he said, even as he knew that she wouldn't be aware of the significance until later in her life. _

_Ruth noticed the small slip of paper Tia Dalma held, "What is it?" she asked, eyeing the paper, but with not as much interest as she would one of her toys._

_Tia Dalma slowly returned to balancing on bended knees, and handed her the certificate, "It might not come in much use to you now, child," she said as Ruth held the paper, "but don't you worry, Ruth…" _

_She glanced up at James before returning her gaze to the young girl; "You'll thank me later for this."_

Ruth opened her eyes, which were gently closed as she savored the soft breeze of the early morning, and gazed into the sea, which was now starting to be illuminated by the birth of the sunlight. The world around her seem to celebrate the return of the sun and the glorious sea brightened and the sky's soft, though powerful coloring. She looked away as the sun's rays became stronger.

As the excitement that simmered within her seemed to boil over as she lay in Jack's bed some time ago, which he still greatly insisted she take, even the late night hours weren't potent enough to sedate her. Jack also seemed excited to reveal the contents of Ruth's letter, but because he was is fact captain, and obligated to more duties than Ruth, it was much easier for him to drift off to sleep.

Finally, she fell into an unstable sleep after about forty minutes of laying awake and musing over what her father could have possibly left her with. Anyone with a general knowledge of pirates could have reasoned a map, but Ruth knew better than this. Ruth's father always encouraged her to take longer routes, and to carve her own path with what was given to her. It was possible that the item in the letter was a map, but a map seemed too simple.

When she awoke from what seemed like a catnap, and it was actually was a short period of rest, for the dawn had only broken the darkness slightly within the cabin. She sat up in the bed, and she wondered what she could possibly do at this hour. She looked over to Jack's bunk upon the sofa, but he unfortunately didn't seem even close to being ready to wake. She couldn't help but smile as Jack gently snored, his boots on a sloppy pile on the floor and his hair thrown wildly around his pillow.

She sighed, decided that she now wasn't capable of another round of sleep, and slowly slid off her bed, exerting extra care as to not wake her sleeping captain.

Once outside, she immediately made her way over to the railing, and wrapped her hands around it, gently leaning forward to get a better view of the surrounding ocean. The sun was now rising, first as a timid source of light, like a tentative child peeking over to see if the coast was clear, and then as a great powerful ring of energy. She had also brought along the gift that Tia Dalma had given her, and she opened it, only to reveal the chocolates she had given her when they had first met.

Now, after finding another strange flashback, she closed up the bag after savoring several of these small delights, and turned as more and more of the ship's crew began their duties.

"Well, well, I certainly don't see much of _you_ during the day."

The voice, which obviously didn't belong to Jack, startled her, and she spun around, only to face a young man, seemingly in his early twenties, slightly jumping back at her reaction.

Laughing quite nervously, she placed a hand over her chest, "Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry, you just gave me a bit of a fright there."

He joined in on her small bout of laughter, "Well, I must apologize for stepping in on an inappropriate time, Miss…Ruth, is it?"

"Yes, it is, and don't worry, you didn't pose as any kind of disturbance, Mister…?"

"Ben," he completed, "Names' Ben."

"Ben, " she said with a curt nod, "Well, it's very nice to meet you, Ben."

After their introduction, Ben commented on the loveliness of the sunrise, and Ruth agreed. This was followed by a moment of silence.

"If…" he paused and awkwardly looked down before bring his eyes up to hers, "If you don't mind me asking, what exactly does Jack, I mean, the captain plan on doing with you?"

This took Ruth aback. There was option one: "Well, Ben, the captain and I are planning to solve the secret to the location to my' father's large store of opals, which he generously left for me in his spoken will. From there, I suppose I could return to my mother, who believes me to be perhaps dead, but then again, my certificate, which grants me the right to Femina Sententia, may give her a bit of hope…"

Then there was option two, which Ruth quickly turned to: "He'll probably take me back to Port Royal, where the last living person of my family lives."

Ben nodded, squinting in the stronger sunlight, "Your…"

"My mother," she said, fidgeting with a loose string on her shirt, "I was visiting my father during his last days."

"Oh…" Ben said, "Ruth…I'm so sorry for your loss."

Ruth looked into his eyes, and was about to reply, when a rough voice startled the two. They turned. There stood Jack at somewhat of a distance.

"Hey there lad! Your duties are currently waiting for ye and all ye do is kick up small talk? I know it's tempting to talk to the only lass aboard, but I'm afraid it'll have to wait!"

The rest of the crew snickered, while Ben gave Ruth an apologetic glance.

"It was nice to make your acquaintance, Ruth," he said, and jogged off to the other side of the ship, where he began to attend to his duties. Jack replaced Ben at Ruth's side.

"I'm sorry, Jack," Ruth said nervously, "I didn't think that-"

"Oh, don't worry about it, love," Jack replied, waving his hand as if swatting away a bothersome fly, "The lad knows better than that. Besides, I'm a bit used to his slightly…rebellious behavior."

A crewman suddenly approached Jack and inquired something about the fashion in which the ropes were tied, and during this short period, Ruth looked out into the sea, watching intently as a small school of fish darted like a cloud of dust under the ship. When it was clear that he had left, Ruth looked to Jack again, and saw that the excitement for her letter began to play with his features.

"So," Jack said, "I see that you decided to be a early bird today. I can't tell you how surprised I was to see that ye had gotten up before me."

Ruth chuckled, "I can imagine, though, that you would know why."

Jack nodded, " I suppose so," he leaned against the railing upon folded arms, "Are ye ready to open the letter?"

"Yes," she said, "I've been ready since last night, really," she said with a somewhat edgy laugh.

"Alright then," Jack replied, "I'll have me first mate order the ship's preparations to begin sail. After we take a look at the letter, we can decide where to direct the ship."

Ruth nodded, and once Jack had left her side to give orders to Gibbs, she slowly stuck her hand within her pocket, and immediately felt the sharp welcome of the envelope's pointed edge. After she had gotten a good grip upon it, she closed her eyes, and strived to chase away any thoughts of anxiety, doubt, or fear.

She took a deep breath. She was ready.

………………..

Jack tapped his fingers rapidly upon his desk, while Ruth sat across from him, gazing, as if in a trance, at the letter.

"Well," Jack said, "The moment's finally arrived," he then sent his signature cheeky grin in Ruth's direction, and nods his head curtly toward the letter.

Ruth squirmed in her seat, "I'm sorry, Jack, I'm just a bit nervous, that's all."

"Ye want me to open it?"

"NO, " she exclaimed, shooting out her hand, "…I mean, it's quite fine, Jack, I'll open it."

She then gently grasped the letter, and at arm's length, as if opening something that smelled horribly, opened it at a painstakingly slow pace. First, the mouth of the envelope, which she was careful not to rip, then the letter itself, which she then quickly withdrew. It felt strange in her hand. It's secrets made it feel like more than an ordinary piece of paper, like something about to come alive in her hand.

She unfolded it. It's words came into sudden view. She began to read.

_My Dearest Daughter, _

_I did not wish to leave you with such a large task, being that my ship is now gone, but I truly have faith in you Ruth. I have always known better to believe that women should only be subject to pretty dresses and their so-called "obligated duties" as a wife and a mother. I have always sensed a longing to see something outside of the ordinary within you, Ruth, and all I wanted to do in my will was to give you that opportunity. _

_I felt that perhaps you should open this when a sense of readiness and sturdy fortitude was clear, for it takes not only strength and courage to begin these explorations, but also a ship, along with those that know of the waters of the Caribbean. Do not try and follow the path I have left for you alone. You are an intelligent young woman, Ruth, but you must understand that even the smartest man can't venture into the Caribbean seas alone. _

_The following page in this letter will be your first instructions for unlocking the location of my treasure. I want you to work for this treasure, Ruth, so I didn't leave you a map. Instead, I have given a set of clues leading to each piece of the map, which are all scattered throughout the Caribbean. The first several clues, I hope, will be rather easy for you, but as the journey progresses, I will give clues to areas that may be unfamiliar to you._

_I wish you the best of luck, Ruth. Do not be discouraged, Ruth, when the path becomes fainter, and harder to find. It's there, Ruth, but sometimes it can take more than a pair of eyes to see it. _

_With all my love,_

_Father_

There was a deep silence within the room for a moment, as Ruth reread this letter, and Jack simply bore his eyes into the back of it, which was the only part of it that he could see, digesting this new bit of information.

Ruth finally looked up, a strange fearfulness making her distant, "Jack, can you read the first clue with me?"

Jack nodded eagerly, "Yes, love, of course."

Ruth stood, and moved the chair ext to Jack's. She sat, and pulled the next letter from behind it. The back was facing them. Ruth took in a shuddering breath.

"This is it," she said, almost more to herself than Jack. She then looked to Jack, "are you ready?"

"Whenever ye are."

"Alright then."

She turned it around.

They then both took turns reading the clue.

"_This turtle floats, and upon its shell there thrives_

_The foulest side of fallen lives_

_Come here firstly but not alone,_

_And find the man with the cluttered home._

_Look for him in a drunken daydream where he works up a sweat_

_Making sure his bills are met._

_He might not see you,_

_But try and use,_

_The enclosed in which I left for you."_

"Ah-HA!" declared Jack, practically jumping up from his chair, "It's lucky that you're traveling with me, love! I know the first location!"

"Tortuga," Ruth replied to this, "The Spanish word for turtle is Tortuga. I remember my father telling me stories about the corruption that occurs there."

"Well, _that_ wasn't too bad, now was it?"

"My father didn't exaggerate. This clue _was_ rather easy," Ruth said, setting the letter on the desk.

Excitedly, Jack reached for his coat, but Ruth's hand shot up, "But wait! The rest of the clue…"

Jack gave Ruth an expectant look.

"Oh, well…we can solve the remainder of it when we arrive, can't we?" Ruth said.

"Of course, cross that bridge when we get to it, eh?" he replied, a grin tugging a side of his mouth.

…………………

After Jack had ascended to the helm, and had barked orders to his crew to prepare to make way for Tortuga, Ruth decided that because she had gotten past the awaited excitement of the day, she now needed to catch up on her rest.

As she slept, strange, erratic dreams came and went, and she seemed to float smoothly through each one, until one strange dream, some hours later, in which she was walking on the floor of the ocean, came to a sudden halt as something tore her from her sleep. Her eyes snapped open, and she screamed.

She didn't feel something or someone shake her from her slumber, but a sound. It couldn't have been a sound that her dream produced, for it was so strong that it seemed to have an air of tangibility. It was an explosion.

Panic washed over her, and she leapt from the bed, dashing to the door. Another explosion filled the air with a terrifying sound. She screamed once again. Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed through the hall, and the door of the cabin was thrown open.

"Ruth, please, stay in the cabin!" shouted Jack, trying to overpower the commotion from upstairs.

"What's happening?" Ruth shouted, her voice shrill and tense with dread.

The captain looked toward the deck, and then to Ruth, appearing almost fearful of the answer itself.

"We're being attacked by an enemy pirate ship!" he finally shouted, and the ship lurched, almost sending Jack and Ruth to the floor. Jack regained his stance, "STAY HERE!" he ordered, and with that, he gave Ruth one last glance before closing the door, leaving her to tremble in fright as she leaned against the desk.

**Author's Note: **Oh no! What will become of the attack? Find out in Chapter 7!

**Author's Second Note: **How was the chapter? I'm so sorry that I had to leave another cliff- hanger, but I want to try and update as much as I can! Anyway, please review for this chapter, and not only for this one, but for previous chapters as well if you want. Thanks!


	7. Chapter 7

**Oh-oh! Sorry people, but I should have researched into their stop in Jamaica. Port Royal is actually in Jamaica, so Jack could have easily paid Will and Liz a little visit…Let's just pretend Port Royal isn't in Jamaica! Imaginations, people, we have imaginations, don't we?**

Chapter 7

As Ruth huddled under Jack's desk, her hand tightly wrapped about its heavy leg, she brought her knees up under her chin, which were sliding from beneath her as the ship occasionally rocked like a buoy caught in a large wave. She could clearly remember the last time she had experienced an attack: aboard her ship to Port Royal, and had hoped that she would never hear a sound as horrific as a gunshot or a cannon after that. Unfortunately, those noises rained from above only hammered and beset the ship.

She tried desperately to push her overwhelming shock away, but knew that it was impossible, knowing that members of Jack's crew, even Jack himself, could be slaughtered as she sat there.

Thoughts of possible, horrific futures knotted her stomach more tightly than the bucking of the ship, and she tried to retrieve her faith in Jack. Why shouldn't she trust his skill? He was, in fact, one of the most fearsome pirates in the Caribbean. She closed her eyes and tried to fight back tears. She didn't know if she could bear being transferred to yet another pirate ship, and the chance that they were as merciful as Jack was as slim as a thread…

It was indeed selfish to dwell on thoughts like these, when Jack's life could be in sheer jeopardy. She felt a tear roll down her cheek as she imagined Jack doubling over from a gunshot, or the cold pierce of a sword…

Jack was legendary, she thought, as she chased away the morbid side of her imagination, and was used to experiencing attacks of this nature. It was highly unlikely that he would be defeated. Or so she hoped.

After only several minutes of cowering from beneath the table, she felt a sudden urge to migrate into the dangerous atmosphere of the deck. She could no longer tolerate her intense feelings of helplessness as she sat cowardly curled up in a ball like the pill bugs she used to observe as a child.

She squirmed carefully from under the table, but with still a firm grasp of the leg. Now, she still sat, but without the protection of the desktop above her, and she peered with narrowed eyes at the doorway. There was no way she contribute to protecting the ship, for she possessed no weapon of any sort…or experience defending her self for that matter.

As the shot of another cannon filled the air, Ruth covered her ears and retreated into the darkness under the desk once more. It was going to be a long day.

………………..

The sudden quiet around her was so beautiful, that she thought that it was actually the sound of a choir of angels signaling the soundlessness. A moment passed, and a feeling of dread returned as she realized that it could be Jack's crew that was silenced.

Then, shouts of victory sounded from above, and Ruth released a sigh of relief when the cries were directed toward Jack Sparrow and his beloved Black Pearl. Ruth scrambled from the desk, fearing her position now considered obsolete, and ridiculous now that the danger had passed.

Minutes later, the door opened with a swing, and in swaggered Jack, a triumphant grin upon his face. As he stood there, panting, sweat clearly glistening off his face, he stared at her as if expectant of a cheer, and spread his arms widely, as if presenting himself in a rather majestic, proud manner. Moments passed.

"I am perfectly capable of waiting for my applause, love."

Ruth stood motionless, her hair tousled and her shock only slightly worn off, taking in his almost conceited stance, until a rather large spot of blood on his left arm caused her eyes to widen.

"J-Jack," she stammered, bringing up a shaking hand to point to his arm, "Your-your arm, it's…"

Jack looked over his right shoulder and brought his arm up, and not even a gasp escaped him as he discovered his wound.

"Ahhh…" he said baring his teeth in pain, "now that ye mention it, love, I thought I felt somethin' there." Ruth rushed to his side.

"Oh, Jack, let me…just let me see it," she said, fighting to grab his arm, which he swung this way and that teasingly in order to avoid her taking it. He sighed exasperately, and finally slowed his arm as her large, cherubic eyes bore into his, "Alright then, but don't exaggerate it, love…it's really just a scratch. Trust me, love, I've encountered too many of these-"

He pulled up his sleeve and revealed a small, though painful-looking bullet wound. Although the bullet seemed to only skim the surface of his flesh, and thankfully didn't enter the skin, the wound managed to exert a steady flow of blood.

"Jack," she whispered shrilly, placing a hand over her mouth, "How can you just brush this off as a _scratch_?"

"Because…" he looked off into the distance for a second, a confident smirk alighting his face, "Well, because I'm Captain Jack Sparrow, love."

Ruth rolled her eyes.

"Well," she retorted to this, "Would the brave, valiant pirate captain happen to know where one can find a rag?"

Jack laughed, and his mischievous grin returned to an affectionate smile; a smile that he rarely expressed until Ruth came aboard, "There's no need to fret, love," he said, his voice rolling into a short laugh, "I've had to treat many of these types of wounds, including those, much, much worse…"

Ruth nodded, and inclined her head downwards as her neurotic behavior became clearer and clearer to her, "I'm sorry, Jack," she began softly, but then brought her head up, "I just…I just couldn't imagine if something had, well if something had happened to you, and…" Her eyes suddenly became glazed with oncoming tears, and she sniffled, looking away.

"Ruth…" Jack murmured as a look of concern drastically altered his features, "I –I didn't mean to frighten ye, pet. Ruth, it's fine, love, I'm just fine."

Ruth walked over to the sofa, and plopped down upon it halfheartedly, burying her face in her hands as she began to cry. "I'm so pathetic, aren't I?" she managed force from her mouth in between her heavy sobs.

"No, no, no, no, Ruth, don't say that," he replied, quickly making his way to her side, "I'm sure you're just a bit shaken up because of the attack. Ye have been through one before, haven't ye?" he said as he sat down beside her.

She shook her head, her gentle waves of hair falling into her face and covering it as if in shame, "Yes, but I could never adjust to that breed of danger, Jack," she said with voice taut with emotion.

"I'm sorry ye had to suffer, Ruth, and if there's anything I can do," he paused to take in her troubled look, "…you're really quite shaken up now, aren't ye?" he said as he gazed upon her trembling, form, her eyes strangely emotionally void from shock.

She nodded, and she hiccupped as her sobs loosened.

"Well, this has me thinking back to when you first arrived, Ruth," Jack began, "and how terrified you were at your possible fate aboard my ship," he began, "I remember very well of my words to you; I told you that I will serve as a, well – well as a guardian, but whatever term you'd like to use for my role, I will do my best to protect you, and see you to your new arrangements…and even when it's clear now that we'll be together for longer than I expected, I'm still determined to remain faithful to that commitment."

Ruth smiled softly, her eyes starting to return to their bright nature, and she wiped away the damp trails on her cheeks left behind by her tears, "Thank you, Jack," she said, "You don't know how much those words mean to me."

…………………

As the moon above the ship seemed to glow with pride, as if it had overthrown the sun itself for that glorious place in the sky, Jack's crew merrily celebrated the victory of the Pearl as pirates usually did: by drinking large amounts of rum and performing wild jigs to sea chanteys. Ruth, on the other hand, migrated as far away she possibly could from the frivolous bunch, and stood at her favorite place at the front of the ship, with only breathtaking view of the ocean to keep her company.

Until…

"Do you know of any constellations?"

Ruth turned to none other than Ben, and greeted him with a welcoming smile, "To be quite honest, no, not really," she said with a laugh.

"Oh…"

"Do you?"

"No, not really, either," he replied, laughing himself.

The two stood as many do at a railing when they plan to remain there for a while, by leaning against it by folded arms to preserve some comfort standing. They both allowed their words to linger away and dance on the meandering breeze like the faint melody of drifting music, and took in the music from behind them: the words of the sea chanteys and the drunken voices that accompanied them. When the song ended, they both burst into laughter.

"They sound like a bunch of fools, don't they?" Ruth said between giggles.

"Yes, like a pack of wild monkeys," Ben replied, which only made the two laugh harder at the thought of the intoxicated monkeys waving mugs of rum and singing to sea chanteys.

When the humor had finally worn off, the young pair looked out to the ocean, hypnotized to the moonlight dancing off its inky surface.

"Ben?" she asked, desperate to break an oncoming silence.

He looked toward her, his eyes bright with curiosity, "Yes?"

It was now Ruth's turn to turn her eyes away uncomfortably as she reconsidered her question, biting her lip with apprehension, "I believe that since I answered a rather personal question that you asked me earlier, it's your turn to answer something that may be a bit awkward."

Ben grinned, "Now, now, don't fret, Ruth…I'm an open book, if you will," he replied to this.

Ruth nodded, "Alright then, Ben," she said, now with a new confidence, "What are your…origins, I suppose. Were you always a pirate?" she inquired, accenting the last word with a stronger air of curiosity and a cocked eyebrow.

Ben looked back at the glistening face of the sea and ran a hand nervously through his thick red hair, "Well, Ruth…no, I mean, I wasn't always a – well a pirate. In fact, I originated from a rather comfortable lifestyle."

Ruth nodded and gazed at him, expectant of the rest of his speech.

"About several months ago, my father and I were traveling to Martinique to visit my relatives, and The Black Pearl ambushed our ship. It was really quite unexpected, and of all pirate ships to run across, it had to be Sparrow's…"

Ruth suddenly looked upon her question with regret.

"But you see, my father actually works for the East India Company, and Sparrow held a grudge against him. Jack almost killed my father, but I intervened. I made a hasty deal with him: I vowed him five years of service upon his ship in exchange for the survival of my father."

Ruth gasped, "_Five_ years?" she exclaimed, "Was there not any other way you could negotiate this?"

Ben gave her a rather bleak look, and sadly shook his head. Ruth could not help but consider the chance that Ben's father could be on the hunt at this moment, ruthless in his search to retrieve his son. Then again, Jack would have been aware of this possibility, and also of his uncanny way of slipping through the authorities' hands like sand…

Ruth softly touched his arm, "Ben, I…I 'm so sorry that you were placed in that situation…that was so brave of you."

Ben smiled softly, "He was my father, Ruth."

Another silence blanketed them for a moment.

Finally, "I suppose that's why my spirits were lifted at your presence, Ruth," Ben said his eyes shining with a beautiful light of hope, "I feel that I can relate to you in some respects."

Ruth smiled, "Yes, I now feel that I can connect with your feelings of uncertainty and fear…I mean, not so much of Jack, but of this environment – this vast, unpredictable place that's open to so many dangerous possibilities. It scared me, Ben. During my first few days here, I felt a great fear, which was quite hard to shake off, of another attack...and I knew that it would happen sooner or later, and today just happened to be that day."

"Did you fair well?" he asked.

"If you consider shock and fear fairing well," she said with a nervous laugh, "but don't worry about me, Ben, I think that I'll be fine."

The two then proceeded to discuss unrelated matters in order to condense an emotional tension that lay thickly in the air. They spoke of the weather, the workings of the ship, and even debated the name of a certain species of fish until Jack's orders of curfew blared across the ship, and they bade each other goodnight.

"Please forgive me," Ruth said before they went their separate ways, "For recovering your old memories," she said, "It must have been difficult to speak of situations of that nature…"

"Don't be sorry, Ruth…" Ben had replied, "I should be expressing more of an apology to you for bringing up your father's death."

"Well, Ben, I know that you never intended to sadden me, and I never intended to sadden you," Ruth said in quite a calm manner, "Our apologies are both sincere. Why don't we leave it at that?"

………………….

As Jack shooed his stumbling crew to bed before they could cause a real ruckus, he couldn't help but now notice Ruth and Ben seemed to try drawing out more time from their curfew to speak to one another. At first, Jack had felt annoyance at this slight disturbance to their schedule, but now looked upon it with amusement.

He also could not help but wonder if the two held more than a friendly relationship…Jack pondered the choice to ask her, and a grin pulled at his lips as he thought of her possible reaction to this.

Finally, Ruth began to make her way to the cabins, weaving through the drunken crew, and smiling gently toward a strangely sly-looking Jack. A gentle uneasiness washed over her, as it was possible he thought differently of her conversation with Ben.

As she stopped in front of Jack, her smile slightly faded, "Is something wrong?" she asked in a somewhat mockingly innocent voice.

"No…no, not at all," he answered her, and turned to descend into the cabins, trying very hard to purse his lips and suppress his laughter.

………………….

Ben gazed at the pair as they made their way to the cabins, and narrowed his eyes in a strange suspicion at Jack before making his way to bed, a disturbing thought lingering in his mind like a stubborn stain upon clothing.

**Uh-oh!**

**What is that Ben thinking of? You might already have your assumptions but we'll have to wait until Chapter 8! **_Wait_** until Chapter **_eight_**. Wow, I'm a poet and I don't even know it…sorry guys, I'm just happy to finish this chapter.**

**The story should pick up the pace after this point, but I really hope that these chapters have been a good read for everyone. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Here's Chapter 8, everyone! Just to let you guys know, I'm going to add an unexpected twist of events soon. Anyway, please enjoy!**

Chapter 8

Four days later...

Jack held his compass at an angle away from the glare of the sun and narrowed his eyes at the reading. Carefully, though leisurely directing his ship, his mind suddenly wandered to the thought of Will and Elizabeth. The two were probably waiting expectantly for his return. There was a matter of business that was in need of discussion between the three of them, and it was really quite a shame that Jack had no way to contact them in order to inform them of an unexpected event that had arisen…

For a store of brilliant, precious opals just waiting to be found, Will and Elizabeth could certainly wait.

………………

After breakfast, Ruth made her way to the helm, where Jack stood bathed in his muse. Ben waved as she passed, and Ruth returned the greeting. When Ruth came into sight, Jack blinked and acknowledged her presence with a nod and a grin.

"Sleep well?" he asked, flashing one of his golden teeth.

"I suppose," she said, running her hand through her freshly combed hair, "But that bloody storm scared me half to death. I thought the ship was going to be eaten by the sea."

Jack laughed, and turned his head to a patch of breeze that came his way, "I know, lass, I've seen plenty of smaller storms in my day, but it's rare to find one of that fierceness."

Ruth looked out to the sea that lay before them, and smiled at the feel of the breeze lifting her hair from her shoulders and drying the perspiration on her forehead, "How much longer until we arrive?"

Jack turned the wheel slightly, "Oh, I would have to guess about another day and a half at most." Suddenly, he felt as though he should ask about Ben, but just as his lips parted to speak, he closed them. He had been debating with himself during the last several days whether or not to send this question into the air, but didn't wish to cause tension or awkwardness between them.

"Is there anything I can do to assist with anything?" she asked.

Jack thought for a moment. He then glanced behind Ruth to the stern, where Ben struggled to bring in a catch of fish, writhing as the creatures shook the net violently and slapped against his fists. Several fish fell around him, accenting this spectacle as they moved like tiny flags caught in a hurricane.

Jack brought his eyes back to Ruth, "No," he said, "I don't believe we need any assistance at the moment, but I'll inform you if me or any of my crew need your help...savvy?"

………………..

As the sun bade the world goodbye with a grand, vibrantly colored sunset, Ruth exited the cabin after finishing organizing Jack's collection of books and atlases that he had requested her to do only an hour ago. She stopped for a moment to marvel the sunset, before making her way over to Jack, but a voice stopped her in her tracks once more, and she looked toward the direction of the voice. It was Ben.

"Ruth!" he called out, his hand against his mouth to concentrate the direction of his voice. He ran to her side, apologizing to Gibbs, whom he had gently bumped into on his way, and finally reached her.

When he was in proper range, he did something unexpected: he gently grabbed her wrist, and pulled her into the shadows cast by the entrance to the cabins. As the entered this cooler region of the ship, Ruth cast a concerned look to Ben, her confusion and worry etched in her eyes, "Ben, what's going on?" she asked as he released her wrist.

"Nothing, Ruth, I mean…what I mean to say is that…" he looked away, to the deck, as if making sure they were alone, "Can you possibly meet me at the front of the ship after dinner?"

There was such a sound of anxiety in his voice, that it only worried her more "Why?" she asked.

"Ruth," he said urgently, "I just…I know that you're probably sick of me giving you uncomfortable questions, but I need to ask you another…"

Suddenly, a voice pierced the air, and the two jumped at the sound of it, "Ben!" a crewmember called, "Hey Ben! The captain needs ye at the helm!"

"Please…" he begged, "Please just meet me right after dinner."

He then returned to his duties, and Ruth was left frankly quite distressed in the wake of his request. She remained there for a minute or so, almost fearful to return to the deck, wondering what on earth could be on Ben's mind, until the darkness became more evident, and she tentatively followed in Ben's footsteps to the helm. Jack stood there gazing out to sea, the stronger winds that came alive in the evening playing with his dark hair.

"I finished your assignment," she said as she approached him.

"Ah, did ye now?" he answered to this as he tuned to her, "Thank ye, love, I've been meaning to rearrange that stack of…well," he said with a wave of his hand, "I didn't even know what the hell it was until I looked at it the other day…atlases and books, was it not?"

"It was," she replied.

"Well," he said, "Ye know Ben's been acting a bit…strange. He seems edgy. Ye happen to know what's botherin' him?"

Ruth felt her stomach tighten in uneasiness, "No…I haven't noticed a change in him, really," she answered to this, forcing a casualness to her voice to replace the nervousness.

"Hmm…" he said, "I just asked because the two of ye seem to have spent quite a bit of time with each other during the last few days. I just thought ye'd know," he finished with an innocent shrug of his shoulders.

"Alright then," she said, now eager to leave.

"Actually," Jack began, pointing his thumb in the direction of the kitchens, "Can ye go down to the kitchen, and see if they need any help. Dinner seems to be running a tad late tonight, and they can probably use another person to assist."

Grateful for an excuse to depart from the helm, she hurriedly made her way to the kitchen area, bathing in a gentle feeling of guilt with the thought of lying to Jack…while at the same time telling the truth.

…………………

True to her word, Ruth slipped away from the majority of the crew after supper to the very front of the ship, where its darkened, lonely nature gave Ruth the assumption that what Ben had to tell was strictly secretive. The chilled air caused her to shiver, and she rubbed her arms as the shadows cast by the ship only made her trembles worse.

She threw her gaze about this eerie section of the ship, and fortunately, she didn't have to search for long.

"Ruth!" came Ben's voice from a corner.

"Ben?" she answered, and his shadowy figure emerged.

Ruth released a sigh of relief, "Thank goodness I didn't have to wait long for you, Ben…it's so spooky up here," she said as she gave her surrounding a fearful glance.

"I guess it is a bit dark," he said, " why don't we move into the moonlight where's it's less intimidating?" Ruth cooperated with his suggestion, and they moved into a brighter area.

"Alright, Ruth," he began, "I don't want to keep you here for too long, but I've been wanting to ask you this for quite a while…"

Ruth nodded and expectantly awaited his inquiry, aware of the discomfort he may have by asking his question.

"Does…" he sighed, "Does Jack treat you well?"

Ruth was slightly taken aback by this, "Well, yes," she answered, "he cares for me."

"But what I mean to ask is…" he paused, looked away as if considering something, and then suddenly, when he looked back to her again, a look of desperation came upon him, "Ruth…I just need to know…and please be truthful with me. Does he ever take advantage of you?"

Although Ruth had perfectly registered this, she still could not believe that Ben could ask a question of that nature.

"Ben!" she replied to this after she had taken a moment to gape at him, "How can you ask me of such a thing?"

He pursed his lips, and shook his head slowly, as if in disbelief, "He did, didn't he?"

"Of course not!" she said, with almost an air of disgust, and on the verge of an exclamation.

"Ruth," he said demandingly, and grabbed her arms, though not too tightly, "I care about you. I only ask this because I care about you. I'm concerned, Ruth. I – I can't help but be…you're a young girl taken captive by this monster of a man…a _pirate_, Ruth!"

Ruth shoved his hands from her, "How. Dare. You. Say that about him," she spat between gritted teeth.

Ben gazed at her with a look of determination in his eyes, as if with conviction that Jack had done what he had claimed, "Ruth…don't lie to me."

"Honestly, Ben," she said, tears now begging to fall, "I'm not lying to you, and he's certainly not a monster!"

"What else do ye think of me, Ben?" came another voice from the shadows, causing Ruth to gasp, and Ben to jolt in surprise. They both turned to none other than Jack Sparrow, who apparently had been standing there for quite some time.

"Jack!" Ruth declared, her voice tight with fear. Ben could do nothing but look with intense shock at the captain as he approached them.

"So, Ben, is there anything else that you'd like to divulge about me?" Jack asked rather calmly, his arms crossed over his chest.

Ben narrowed his eyes slightly, opened his mouth to speak, closed it, and looked to Ruth, as if an excuse was written upon her forehead. It seemed as though he had been left speechless, though not for too long…

He brought his eyes back to his captain, "Yes," he said with a new level of confidence.

Jack inclined his head in curiosity.

"That you are foul, perverse, and that it's no wonder that I believe that you have forced Ruth to bed with you."

Ruth looked away, unable to bear another moment of this nonsense, and could feel her tears, which were cooled by the touch of the ocean breeze, rolling along her flushed face.

Jack bore his narrowed eyes into Ben's, and failed to even give Ruth a glance. Moments passed, and Ruth still stood with her back to them, shaking with sobs compelled by anger, but also by fear. She braced herself for anything, for a fight to break out behind her, for an explosion of Jack's booming voice…but nothing happened. Instead, Jack's voice broke the still air, but not in the manner that she expected.

"Ruth, please make your way to the cabin," he ordered, never taking his eyes from Ben.

"But-" she began.

"It's opened," he interrupted with his cold voice, "Go."

Ruth didn't even take a moment to hesitate, to glance at Ben's still, ever-determined form, his fists clenched, and his eyes unmoving from his enemy, or Jack's equally motionless form, his eyes bearing such a hidden anger, as if all his fury was concentrated only within them.

She quickly walked from them, afraid of breaking into a run in this sharp, dense darkness. She suddenly regretted leaving Ben's side, feeling now that her presence, although unwanted, might have lessened Jack's anger. His voice was so drastically different, though. The voice that he had expressed revealed a side of him that Ruth had never witnessed. It conveyed sheer authority, and instantly added the word "captain" to his full title. This was why she held such a fearful image of him upon boarding. The tone of his voice alone would have sent a pack of wolves away with their tails between their legs.

This wasn't the Jack she knew.

…………………

As Ruth lay in Jack's bed, anxiety filled her as she considered Ben's punishment. Would Jack punish him mercilessly? Or would he simply sit him down and discuss his true relationship with Ruth, clearing the air in such a sincere voice that Ben would finally accept the truth? She knew very well that the latter would be unlikely. Ruth's father always utilized a certain punishment, based of course, upon the intensity of the wrongdoing, to put that crewmember in their place. He had told her that it was the only way to truly discipline his crew; especially being aboard a pirate ship, where corruption of some sort was usually inevitable.

She still couldn't believe that even in the face of his captain, he would repeat these, not only unaccurate, but words that were thick with disobedience, and that defiled his legendary name. That type of slander could easily lead to the worst of punishments. The thought alone sent tears to her eyes.

Ruth closed her eyes, although she knew that sleep would not come quickly, and tried to push the memory of Jack's hauntingly cold voice from her mind until she heard the turn of the room's doorknob, and her muscles tightened with a strange edginess. He entered, and his footsteps, which seemed to always blend into the background of her life, now seemed like the sounds of the cannons on that day, when the noise of it had sent her under Jack's desk.

Because her back was facing him, she feared where every step took him. Fortunately, he didn't seem to near her, he actually performed quite the contrary. Ruth heard his remove his boots, and then the sound of him sitting upon the couch, the rustle of blankets as he draped himself, and then utter silence.

Ruth closed her eyes again, and when she opened them, another set of tears slowly made their way down her cheeks.

**I'm sorry if that chapter was a bit sad. But don't worry, Jack's not going to kill Ben, if you're wondering. **


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Ruth felt the vague, intangible world of her dreams being pulled from her like the comforting warmth of a blanket on cold winter's day as a gruff voice unlocked the mental doorway from dreams to reality, and her eyes snapped opened. Ruth groaned, as it was Jack's voice that brought her from sleep, and she looked up at him with sleepy, squinted eyes.

"Sorry to wake ye, love, but ye slept in quite a bit," he said monotonously, as she sat up, "We've just arrived." Although Jack's voice didn't bear its usual qualities, his words impacted her in such a way that her eyes widened, and she quickly slid from the bed.

"What – what time is it?" she asked softly with a slightly tense air to her voice as the memories of the night before came at her in a disturbing rush.

"That's not important. Just meet me at the helm when you're ready," he replied without even a glance toward her. His voice seemed so empty that anyone would think that he was simply talking to a wall, and snatching her letter from the desk, he quickly exited his room.

Ruth stood motionless for a moment, and felt that even when this day was one to rejoice for, it's joy was draped with the dark blanket of Ben's previous actions. As Ruth reminisced upon his bold, riskily-taken words, she began to dip her toes into the pool of understanding by realizing emotionally compelled reactions, and began to realize that such a verbal rebellion against Jack may have been just the product of anger. He may have never considered his words, but he hastily reasoned that if Jack could have almost slaughtered a good man like his father, he could have easily ravished a defenseless young girl like Ruth…

The thought of Ben's possibly horrific punishment only remained as clear and unbearable as it did the night before, and she couldn't imagine functioning normally through this day with the distraction. Still, she quickly fixed up her knotted hair, and changed her clothes before dashing out to the deck. The morning air had a slight coolness about it, but as it was that time when the morning transitioned into young afternoon, and the sun had not gained enough power to become too harsh.

She found Jack standing with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing out into the heart of Tortuga, the letter quivering impatiently within his hand. It seemed strange for Jack to so eagerly take the letter, which was rightfully hers, and yet, considering his character, it wasn't…

She arrived at his side, and Jack slowly turned his head, looking at her with neutral eyes, "Aren't ye hungry?" he asked rather lazily.

Ruth didn't seem to notice a feeling of hunger, and she shook her head, "I – I supposed I'm a bit too nervous to feel hunger at the moment," she answered.

Jack nodded, and turned to Gibbs, giving him a set of instructions necessary to keep the ship, including the crew, under firm control, and while these precious words were exchanged, Ruth looked out to the crowded buildings and taverns that were Tortuga. Even with the streams of smoke that leisurely snaked from the chimneys of several building, and the calm of the morning, Ruth knew that in the morning, it was a period of rest, when the waken pirates recovered from their massive hangovers brought on by the alcohol that had adulterated their bodies the night before, and the taverns prepared for another night; for at night was when this serene mask was removed, and the state of violence and anarchy was able to gain its full momentum.

When Jack had finished, they both exited the ship, strolling along the platform that connected the ship to the dock, and made their way into this deceitful town. Whores were easily separated from female tavern workers, with their excessively low-cut dresses and their heavily drawn eyeliner, as they sashayed down the streets with their smug grins and their cupped mouths as they whispered to one another when Jack and Ruth crossed their paths. Occasionally, a drunk could be seen sitting with his back against the wall of an alleyway, his fingers wrapped loosely around the neck of a rum bottle. Their eyes would bore into Ruth's, and in response, she would move slightly closer to Jack's side, trying desperately to hide behind him like a protective barricade.

"So," he began, as he stopped in front of a tavern called The Faithful Bride, "do you remember the rest of the clue?" he asked, finally casting his eyes to her.

"I think so," she answered, "May I please see the letter?" Jack rummaged through his coat pocket, revealed it, and gave it to her. She gently opened it.

"It says here that he works in a drunken daydream. I thought that it could be the name of a location, because the words "drunken daydream" is much too general when discussing a place like this…"

Jack nodded, "Although it's not in capital letters, and it refers to it as "_a_ drunken daydream", rather than _the_ drunken daydream, your father could have worded it that way to throw you off. Why don't we hunt around for a tavern?" he finished, flashing a small grin, which deeply comforted Ruth, even in its insignificance.

She nodded, and smiled softly, "We have nothing to lose, I suppose."

A man, wearing a tri-cornered hat, and sporting a shabby coat, became Jack's first possible source of directions, "Hey you, you there…yes _you, _would you perhaps know of a tavern named The Drunken Daydream?"

"The Drunken Daydream? Yeah, I've heard of the place," at this, the two inwardly cheered, "…Shame ye didn't know, it's one of Tortuga's best kept secrets."

"Could ye possibly direct us there?"

He then turned, and pointed the end of a row of buildings, "Ye just make your way past that beach, and then when the beach ends, they'll be an entrance into a sort of jungle. Don't just walk into it, now, there's gonna be a pathway ye take. After that, ye just rely on the path to get ye there."

The two thanked the man, who then walked into The Faithful Bride, and began to make their way to the beach, the excitement within Ruth dampened by her worry-filled thoughts of Ben.

………………..

As the unlikely team neared a large wall of foliage, Ruth pointed to an opening into the twisted mess of braches, which looked scooped out like seeds from a watermelon, or a tunnel. A pathway, as the stranger had told them, had been cleared and trampled by the feet of man. As they entered this entity of a world, the two were forced to walk in a single file line through the trail, as the path was rather narrow.

Wildly growing leaves reached from their section of the forest and softly brushed against their shoulders, and hung like large raindrops from their braches, while exotic, vibrant flowers seemed to glow from the sunlight that trickled in, and within these spears of light, little particles, which were unidentifiable to Ruth, seemed to be suspended like fairy dust. The greenery was bright, unadulterated by man, and the colors of this rainforest seemed almost ethereal. Ruth heard the call of a bird, and found it peering down at them with curious, beady eyes. She looked about this place with delight, and hoped that she could perhaps return.

Jack remained silent through this walk, and Ruth felt tempted to break the silence, but since the night before, she feared speaking to Jack for some reason. Perhaps it was now awkward for them to speak, or perhaps it was because of his haunting, outlandish tone of voice he had shown Ben…

Finally, a wall of brown shown behind twisting vines and branches, and Jack saw the metal of a doorknob glinting in the sunlight. As this moderately sized building came into view, a sign just above the door declared its name: The Drunken Daydream.

When they had fully approached the door, they almost tentatively entered. It bore the same general qualities as many of the taverns in Tortuga, but various paintings adorned the walls, and the tables were not uniform in style or color. The decorations of this tavern seemed almost eclectic, and the only light at moment to brighten the atmosphere came from the back windows. Apparently, this establishment was not situated within the forest, but at the end of it, for the rush of the waves could be heard, and the golden sands of the shores were visible from the windows.

A voice brought their attention from the unique style of the tavern to a man, who looked to be in his early thirties, and obviously was employed here, standing behind the main bar, wiping the inside of a mug with a rag, "Welcome to the Drunken Daydream," he said, eyeing Ruth almost suspiciously, "What can I do for the two of ye?"

"Well," Ruth began, glancing at Jack, and then at the letter in her hand, "We were just wondering… could we possibly speak to the manager?"

"You're looking at him, sweetheart," he said, and set the mug and rag upon the counter.

She then approached him, and opened the envelope, fishing from it a small pendant that she and Jack had discovered days earlier, which the clue instructed she was to use if he held disbelief in her claims.

"Do you recognize this?" she asked, extending her palm to him, the tiny thing nestled in her hand.

For a moment the man gazed into her palm as if it were actually a tiny leprechaun that sat there instead of an ordinary pedant, and his eyes slightly widened. He looked with disbelief first at Jack and then at Ruth, and motioned for them to follow him, "Come with me," he ordered, and left his station, only to retrieve a group of keys from his pocket and unlock a door directly across from the bar.

Ruth followed Jack into the room, which upon entering, she found was a sort of office. It wasn't in fact his home, but like the letter described, it was quite cluttered. Stacks of parchment filled the corners of the room, while on the floor beside his desk lay several empty bottles of rum. Behind his desk a shelf held a healthy amount of books, but because it couldn't support all of his collection, the rest lay in small towers upon the floor.

"Please, take a seat," he said, motioning his open palm to the chairs in front of his desk. They sat.

"Well, I'll be, Ruth," he said to her, shaking his head in a sort of disbelief, "I can't tell you how much you've grown. The last time I saw ye," he flattened his hand and held it above the ground as he gave her an idea of her short height, "Ye were this small, and ye hardly spoke a word to me." He chuckled, "You're all grown up now. How old are ye?"

"I turned sixteen in March," she said.

"Sixteen, eh? That's a good age," he replied, giving her a curt nod.

He turned to Jack, "And your guardian would be…"

"_Captain_ Jack Sparrow," Jack said, making sure to emphasize his title.

"Well, well, captain, I've heard a great deal about ye. How ye sacked Port Nassau without using a gun to your advantage, did ye? It's an honor to meet ye. My name would be Robert, and I can't tell ye how pleased I am to meet ye both."

"So," Jack said, running his thumb along the pendant, and resting his chin upon the back of his fingers, "Did ye give this pendant to Ruth's father?"

Robert nodded, "That I did, mate," he said, "That was actually me sister's, she unfortunately passed away around your age, Ruth, but she had a large collections of pendants and such. That was definitely one of my sister's," the held out his hand, "May I?" he asked. Jack handed him the pendant.

He turned it over, and held it up to them, "Ye see there?" he asked, pointing to several scratches found at the bottom. Jack and Ruth leaned over to get a better look, and found that their complexities reached father than simple scratches, for they were actually the words Lily Aderson.

"You didn't have to give my father one of your sister's things, though," Ruth found herself almost exclaiming to him, "What if something happened and I never came to find you?"

Robert chuckled, and gazed down at the pendant with a look of nostalgia, "I knew ye would come back, though," he said with a grin, "Ye have your father's blood, Ruth."

……………….

When Robert had given them a small parcel, which bore the next clue, the three exchanged their goodbyes, and when Ruth approached Robert to give him her particular farewell, she thanked him gratefully for keeping her father's item safe and secure.

"Oh, it was the least I could do," he replied to this, "If I were to tell you about the number of times your father saved me neck, you two would be here until midnight."

The three chuckled, and then Robert opened the office door and led them outside the entrance of the Drunken Daydream.

"Well, Ruth, Jack, I wish ye two only the best of luck, and Ruth," he said turning to her, his expression serious, and his tone of voice drained of its liveliness, "Ye be extra careful now. I know about the dangers out there at sea, and your task at hand is rather risky."

"I will, Robert," she said, her eyes gleaming with determination, "My father taught me a great deal about the ocean and its many perils, but with my resources and knowledge at hand, I believe that I'm ready."

Robert nodded, "Your father is probably lookin' down on ye with pride, Ruth."

With a final goodbye from each, the captain and Ruth quietly left the Drunken Daydream and as Robert sent them another wave, Ruth glanced behind her shoulder every now and then until the tavern and Robert disappeared behind a tangle of leaves, branches, and vines, like the entrance of a portal into another world.

…………………

Adrien, a man only very slightly older than Ben, swaggered lazily down the main street of Tortuga, and allowed a gentle breeze to move his wild locks of hair into his eyes as he scanned the docks for his ship, The Intrepid. He licked his rum-stained lips, and turned his head, only to see a young girl, and an eccentric-looking pirate strolling leisurely past The Faithful Bride. Something about the two caught his interest, and he moved behind a tree to get a good look at them without stirring up feelings of suspicion within the two.

First, he studied the attire of the man, and concluded that, without a doubt, he was in fact the legendary Captain Jack Sparrow. He was much too distinct, like a flamingo among a flock of various birds, to blend in so easily. Besides, Adrien recalled him in a single memory when he worked upon Porter's ship. He hadn't changed a bit.

He remembered that smug, almost pompous look about him as he made those strange hand motions when he spoke or walked. And then the girl…

With just a glance, his eyes widened, and moved fully behind the tree, his breathing falling into a slightly labored state. Could it be?

He looked behind the tree, and back at the two, narrowing his eyes, and licking his lips a second time. It was. He ran through the pages of his memory once again, and found her, though only a bit younger, with her long, long hair waving about her like seaweed on the ocean floor. He had only stopped to visit his daughter, and remembered very clearly his concern for her safety, which was why he refused to take her out into open water. He could clearly remember her arguing with her father about the matter, and the way her eyes shimmered with tears as she exclaimed to him her misery of being pent-up in her mother's house. He ran both his hands through his hair, and took in a deep breath: it was Ruth Celine Porter that walked by Jack's side. He tried to register this, but his disbelief drove him to look at the two again as they walked by. What would Ruth be doing with a man like Jack Sparrow? Jack Sparrow did know her father, perhaps he became her guardian after he died, but then again…she had a mother, did she not?

Another possibility clouded his thoughts: could her father have left her a cache of treasure? It was a common a tradition among pirate captains to leave their children a store to find after they passed, and it seemed too much of a possibility to overlook. Could her father have used Jack to help her? It seemed fairly possible after he had lost his ship. Still, whether Ruth had made a deal with the knave, he thought, the insightful gears of his cunning mind whirling at top speeds, or her father had negotiated with him, Jack was still a pirate…and after having told her the secrets to her father's treasure, Sparrow would have disposed of the girl by now. There had to be a reason that he needed her. There had to be something that she knew.

If she was so valuable…then he would have to exploit it. Adrien smirked as a plan began to develop within the cunning of his mind.

…………………..

When the two finally returned to the Black Pearl, a crewmember informed them that lunch was ready, and they made their way down to the mess, their stomachs protesting their emptiness with faint growls. Ruth ate her meal quickly, though quietly, and only spoke to Jack occasionally. Afterwards, Ruth followed him to the cabin, where he placed the small parcel upon his desk, and turned to Ruth.

"We're actually going to be stayin' for the night, so if you'd like, we can tackle the next clue later on…I actually have to see to a bit of business right now, anyway."

"That's fine, Jack," she said, giving him a tired, gentle smile, "I'm actually a bit tired."

Jack returned the grin, and walked to the door, wrapping his hand around the doorknob, but before he left, he turned, "If ye need anything, I'll be here on the deck," he said, and then left an anxious Ruth, who immediately sat upon the bed when the door closed before him.

She couldn't believe how casual and calm Jack had been throughout this day, although he did acknowledge last night's events by acting unusually quiet. It was much too obvious now that he had punished Ben. When she stood at the deck that morning, she couldn't find Ben working at his usual duties, and later that day during lunch, he was nowhere to be seen. Also, a tension had built steadily between she and Jack, one that kept Jack from his usual self, and that frightened Ruth deeply. He, of course, had probably also sensed that Ruth knew of this chastise, and this only worsened things between them.

She slowly lowered herself onto the bed, and lay there without expecting sleep to come to her and so quickly take her from her problems temporarily. She had to find out what had happened to Ben. If only Jack had not expressed such a frightening side of him, the question itself wouldn't be so grim and forbidding. If he had caused such a fear to develop just with the beginning stages of his wrath, she couldn't imagine provoking a new level of his anger. She also couldn't imagine, however, Jack unleashing such an emotion on someone like herself. Then again, Jack had failed to apologize, or simply speak about the night before, and had been so silent about Ben, that she began to wonder if he had done something truly torturous to him.

She turned her head and gazed at her arm, which lay limply to her to her side, and bit her lip as she began to decide whether or not to take Jack aside and ask him. It was just a question…but it was one that could spark only conflict, if, of course, she pressed the matter. She could easily hold her tongue and not persist if Jack chose not to tell her, but in this case, she felt that it was necessary. Jack had every right to keep the truth from her, but he also needed to consider Ruth's feelings in the process. Would he?

She began to wonder if she should test him, and finally, she sat up, and felt her stomach churn as her conscious argued with her nagging fears.

She had to ask him.

…………………

As Ruth walked into the dying sunlight, she sighed, closed her eyes, struggled to mentally prepare herself, and then quickly ran her eyes about the area. She realized he wasn't there, and began a more thorough search of the deck. For the last several hours, she contemplated her decision, and she concluded that in fact, it would be the right thing to do, but she dreaded his reaction if she felt it important to know if he kept the answer from her.

When she rounded a corner, she felt a gasp escape her lips as he came into view. There he was, walking in his usual manner, his eyes bright, alert, almost as if he were preparing for the night's pandemonium.

"Hello Ruth," he greeted her.

"H-Hello, Jack," she stammered, her eyes darting nervously to her side before she correctly composed herself, "Can I…can I have a word with you?"

Jack shrugged, "Alright then…If ye wish, we can discuss this in the cabin area or-"

"Y-yes," she cut him off hastily, "let's discuss this in the cabin," she finished, her eyes avoiding him, as if his were forbidding.

They both then made their way to the cabin in a grim silence, and when immediately when entering, Ruth migrated to the far end of the room.

"Jack," she said, "I…I need to ask you about Ben."

Jack slowly approached her, and pursed his lips, studying her with narrowed eyes, "What about him?" he finally replied to this, his voice taut with a sort of irritation.

"Oh, Jack," she said, slowly shaking her head, "you know perfectly well of what I've feared the entirety of last night, and this day…"

A frightening silence fell between them.

"Please, Jack," she struggled to beg as tears flew to her eyes, and her voice became strained with emotion, "Please tell me what you did to him."

Jack's eyes slightly softened as her tears became evident, "Ruth…it's not necessary at this point-" he said.

"Not **necessary**?" she questioned with such anger, that it seemed to compel her to approach him, "How can you simply say that like…like you just scolded him? I know you did worse. My father was in fact, a pirate captain, if you forgot," she finished with sharp, bitter sarcasm.

Jack raised his eyebrows at her sudden outburst, and gave her an intensely exasperated look, "I have every bit of authority to stop this, Ruth. Telling you would only worsen things."

"No, Jack," she answered him, clenching her fists, the idea of his anger abandoning her as her courage increased, "You don't seen to understand that if you fail to tell me, my **worry** will only worsen."

"Tell me, Ruth," he said, cocking his head, a strange, angry amusement playing upon his lips and eyes, "Why are ye so concerned about the boy? Is it because ye fancy him?"

"No, Jack!" she said, her exasperation now the equivilant of his, "I **don't** fancy him, I **care** about him…but it seems that you couldn't see the difference between lust and love seeing that you're nothing but a **pirate**."

Her words at that moment, when she only felt sheer regret, and when Jack gazed at her with a dangerously still, unmoving face, was the quintessence of irrational words driven by pure rage. He took a step toward her, "What did ye say?" he said, his voice low and icy; the very voice Ruth feared.

A single tear rolled down her face, "Please, Jack," she begged, the possible result of her thoughtless action sending goosebumps down her arms, perfectly aware that trying to direct his attention from her own slander would be in vain, "please just tell me…"

"Not with your mouth, I won't," he replied coldly, narrowing his dark eyes "How dare you take after that insolent little bastard and insult me…"

"He's not a bastard, Jack!" she screamed, "he was just brought up on that preconception. I myself was a bit surprised that you didn't do such a thing!"

"Why Ruth," he seethed, "after I took ye in as a whimpering, vulnerable, little victim, and provided ye with clothes, food, and shelter, would ye question me in such a way?"

"How can you keep such a thing from me?" Ruth questioned through her tears, "The more you keep this from me, the more I begin to believe that you did something unspeakable to him!"

"Don't try and change the subject, Ruth," he spat, "whether ye said those word or not, I would never tell ye."

A look of fury came upon Ruth, "Ben was right…you're no better than any other pirate that corrupts the ocean!" she screamed.

At that moment, Jack felt such an intense rage boil over within him, that he felt a strong urge to do something, anything, to put her in her place. He could no longer tolerate her ungratefulness, and in a sudden movement, his hand flew up.

Time seemed to slow, and in those seemingly painstakingly slow seconds, he stopped his hand as he realized his pact with himself never to bring his hand up to a woman, and as Ruth ducked to avoid the blow. The two stood in their positions, as if now time had fully come to a halt, and stared at each other with widened eyes, Jack, with his hand in midair, and Ruth, whose own hand had shot up in an attempt to block him.

It was Jack's turn to regret his action.

Finally, Jack slowly lowered his hand, and Ruth brought down hers, but began to back away from Jack, her eyes now producing tears at a rapid rate.

"Ruth," he said, his voice returning to its usual, gentle state, "Please, I…I didn't mean to scare ye." Her fearful gaze could break the hardest of hearts, and it was unbearable to look upon.

He approached her, and held out his hand to touch her upon her shoulder. She quickly recoiled.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" she shrieked, practically leaping to dodge him, "STAY AWAY FROM ME!"

"Ruth!" Jack said desperately, putting out his palms to signal a truce, "I'm not going to hurt ye!"

He tried to near her, but she bolted from him and snatched a book from his shelf, "I SAID…STAY AWAY FROM ME!" she screamed, hurling it at him. Jack was lucky to have accumulated such fast reflexes over the years, and he avoided the potentially agonizing impact of the book with a quick dodge.

She then expressed a look of sheer repent at attempting to harm the man she trusted, but she quickly escaped her regret, and made a mad dash for the door with Jack close behind, "Ruth!" he yelled, "Ruth, please, just let me speak!"

Just as she reached the door, he caught up to her, and grabbed her arm, pulling her to him, struggling to grab her other as she began to flail like an angry fish taken from water. Jack finally caught her other arm, and as he tried to move away from the door, Ruth pulled her arm forward, and swiftly elbowed him in his side, causing her to immediately be freed of his grasp.

With Jack distracted by the sharp pain, and as he doubled over and clenched his teeth, Ruth opened the door, and darted outside. Jack, who did his best to recover as quickly as he could, fled from his room, his hand upon his side, slightly bent over, running with a bit of a limp, but his determination to keep her from leaving was left without the slightest falter.

Meanwhile, Ruth continued through the docks, but because the sound of Jack's boots pounding the deck could not be heard, she slowed, and finally glanced behind her shoulder. Through blurry tears, and thick sobs, she looked back at the ship that she had called her home, and had felt more like her home than her mother's. Despite her fright, and her new fear in Jack, she longed to return without having to encounter the various dangers in Tortuga, but she felt that couldn't turn back now. She had already chosen this sojourn, and felt the greatest urge at that moment to leave the confines of the Pearl, if only for the evening. This would be one of the greatest acts of rebellion against Jack, and as she thought of how it would affect him, it brought a steady flow of tears from her eyes, but yet, it strangely satisfied her anger and her need for revenge.

She ran.

That one action, though not fully done, sparked such a horrifying store of memories of her time aboard the Sea Charmer, that it also brought about a reservoir of anger and sadness that she had tried to pent up within her, and that one movement by Jack only triggered her longing to set it free…

The only image she had of Jack now was his hand, and the terrifying detail of it as it came so closely to her face. Jack had committed to protecting her from harm, and even if he didn't hurt her, the fact remained that he attempted to. Who knows what would have happened if she had stayed, or if Jack had successfully hit her?

She knew perfectly well of the irrationality of her decision, and she knew that she could have allowed Jack to speak, but she needed to get away, and in her fume, she felt that she could have punched him in the face if she had stayed...perhaps, she thought, she just needed to cool down.

The shouts and screams gained their notorious noise level as she neared, she took another look behind her, only to see Jack sprinting down the docks like the Kraken was on his heels, and tentatively, she darted into the town and disappeared into the crowds.

**Well, that just goes to show how our anger can make us do things we wouldn't normally do.** **I'm sorry if this chapter was also a bit sad, and that I left off on a bleak note. Adrien is also going to add kinda a little twist to the plot, I hope you don't mind.** **I can try to update as soon as possible, because I don't like leaving endings like this.**

**Also, thank you to those who have reviewed! **

**Please review more, everybody! Your reviews really make my day and bring a smile to my face! **


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Ruth skirted through the flow of revelers and the occasional crowd surrounding a fight, keeping her head low as to not attract attention to the fact that she looked so weak with her tear-stained face. She also couldn't bear glancing at the chaos around her. Whoops, cheers, screams, and shriek stung the air with a force that it seemed to pollute it. She couldn't hear Jack's voice behind her, but nevertheless, when she reached the opening of an alleyway, she flew into it's entrance, and peered behind it, only allowing as minimal as a part of her to be exposed to the crowds.

Jack had probably reached the main street, but in the dense, rapid hurry of everyone, the mixture of faces and figures seemed to blend together in one huge mass, making it almost impossible to distinguish one pirate from another. The fact that the majority of the heads wore tri-cornered hats and sported the traditional attire of a pirate certainly didn't help either.

Ruth tried to control her heavy breaths, and with a sigh of relief, retreated back into the alley, placed a hand over her heaving chest, and slowly sank to the floor of the alley, enjoying the cool face of the wall behind her.

Though she had escaped Jack, there was, of course, a great deal of regret involved, and as she thought of the worry not only washing over her, but over Jack, and of the pain she had inflicted, and not just from elbowing him, her face suddenly contorted as she began to sob. Bringing her knees up to her chin, she slowly raised her hands to her face and formed into a little ball, much like the one she had taken to when an enemy had attacked the Black Pearl. As she fully realized the intensity of her mistake, she shook her head, as if trying to deny her presence here, like a sojourn into a nightmare.

The screams and shouts from Tortuga's main street compelled her to move further into the darkness of the alley, and a new fear of this place without the aid of Jack only worsened her crying. A gunshot pierced the air, causing her to scream and flinch, her hands flying from her face.

She stood, carefully approached the entrance of the alleyway, and with trembling hands touched the place where the wall's corners incepted, tentatively leaning around the corner to check the area.

Then, she turned her head, and found, with a slight gasp, as it looked like a figure from the corner of one's eyes, a rickety wooden sign. Cautiously looking out into the swarm of prostitutes and pirates, she squinted and found that its arms pointed toward several other backstreets. Withdrawing herself back into the dank alleyway, she leaned against the walls behind her and pressed her palms against its gritty surface. Gazing into the wall directly in front of her, she took a deep, steady breath, and closed her eyes as she meditated upon her decision.

Lifting herself from the support of the wall, she approached the entrance of the alley, and darted from its shielding, though terrifying darkness and into the streets of Tortuga.

…………………

The Hazy District contrasted in a sheer manner to that of Tortuga's main street, and with its somewhat sluggish, gloomy nature, whether it be its decrease in population, or its isolation from the heart of the town, one would have thought they had left Tortuga entirely. The night didn't help to release this district from its bleakness, and the only light here came spilling from several run-down taverns. The only tavern that appeared somewhat decently kept was the Laughing Lounge, an establishment located to Ruth's far right. Rubbing her arms gently from the crisply cold air that had fallen, she threw her alert gaze about the area, surveying the area for any suspicious figures before fully entering this sleepy place.

The mountains in the distance were now fully visible, as Ruth had probably reached a far corner of Tortuga, and the tangle of vegetation blanketing the hills was partly illuminated from the moonlight. Mainly women walked through this area, clutching baskets protectively to their stomachs or fetching water from a well situated in the middle of the street. The men who resided her sat lazily upon rocking chairs near the entrance of these taverns, the creak of the chair from under their weight breaking the strange silence in the Hazy District, or their voices became clear as the faint, softened laughs or exclamations of their merriment drifted from the doors of the taverns.

When Ruth neared The Laughing Lounge, she mounted the stairs and ventured into the tavern.

………………..

Adrien peered from the hood of his navy cloak into the Hazy District, and a faint grin alighted his full lips. With the shade of his hood concealing his bright eyes as it casted a ragged shadow onto his face, his mysterious air made his look even more sinister.

Bringing the cloak more tightly about his shoulders, he made his way toward The Laughing Lounge, his cloak rippling behind him the waves before a storm.

………………..

Ruth took no time to observe the strangers around her, but quickly retreated to an empty table, where she sat, and allowed her legs to rest from the rather prolonged walk through Tortuga.

Her eyes soon adjusted to the light, and as the warm atmosphere engulfed her, she closed her eyes for a moment and sighed. A waitress approached her, her fists digging into her hips, "Ahem!" she exclaimed. Ruth's eyes shot open.

"Are ye plannin' on orderin' anything missy?" she questioned rather irritably, her sharp arch of an eyebrow raised.

Ruth stuck her hands into her pockets, and found that in her haste, she had left without any money whatsoever. Only the certificate and the letter from her father skimmed her fingers.

She then looked up to the waitress and gulped, "Would there be a problem if I failed to?"

The waitress narrowed her eyes, "I'm not being paid to watch ye just sit around here. If you're not plannin' on getting' anything, then scoot, and find somewhere else te sleep," she finished, throwing her thumb behind her shoulder to emphasize her desire for her to leave.

Without a word, Ruth rose, and exited the tavern, trying to ignore the snickers and chuckles from behind her.

"Hey, girly!" a man shouted from the back, causing Ruth to flinch, "Why don't ye come sleep here…on me lap!" This brought a uproar of laughter from the men, and Ruth, who didn't bother turning around to face this embarrassment, darted out the door, tears of humiliation threatening to fall as she fled from the tavern in order to quicken the death of the sounds of catcalls from inside.

…………………

Adrien had kept a reasonable distance from the young girl, as to not make his presence so clearly known, and when he finally reached the tavern, he mounted the stairs, and when he had reached the top, a figure emerged from the doorway, and to Adrien's surprise, it was Ruth.

The girl had her head bowed, tears glistening upon her eyes, and judging by the sound of calls and whistles from within, Adrien reasoned that the shouts were directed toward her. Adrien stood at the doorway for a moment, watching Ruth's back as she passed, the waves of her hair snaking down her back like seaweed, and when her feet had reached the dirt of the ground, Adrien followed.

Here, it would be harder to catch her, for now his ominous presence would be more than clear to Ruth, but at this point, Adrien was more than eager to capture her, even if he had to resort to desperate measures…

………………..

Ruth, who was now heading back to the Pearl, had decided that even an hour here was more than enough time to spend in a place like Tortuga. She found that the only way back was through a series of darkened streets that turned into numerous alleyways, and though it was incredibly frightening, she continued on like a valiant warrior into battle. She had hoped that others would be taking this street as well, but her luck seemed to have decided to abandon her for the night…as long as there were several other around her, including women, mind you, the experience would not be so intimidating.

Remaining within the confines of a cabin with warm clothes readily available was much more preferable than an evening here, even if it meant facing Jack Sparrow with the new tension between them.

Tears slipped down her cheeks as regret filled her for leaving Jack when she had selfishly wanted her way, and had failed to apologize to him for hurting him, whether it be slightly physically (Ruth now felt absolutely terrible about elbowing him), or more for insulting him. There was probably an explanation for why Jack kept Ben's fate a secret, and although she still bore anger toward him for keeping this from her, she too had her faith in him. Jack wasn't an evil man, though, he certainly wasn't perfect either. Perhaps when she returned, he would tell her, and allow Ruth to comfort Ben…

Suddenly a sound so perfectly terrifying pierced the eerie quiet of the street, and she froze, the beating of her heart now strangely louder than normal, and a sudden coat of sweat moistened her palms. She slowly turned.

There, standing a short distance away from her, was a figure, and to her despair, it wasn't just her imagination. He stood in the shadows cast from a building, his arms to his sides, dressed in a cloak, and if it weren't for his boots protruding from the ends of it, she would of thought of him to be a ghost.

A moment passed.

Ruth felt her hands begin to tremble, "Hello?" she called out rather timidly.

The figure silently stood, without any sort of reply, and for another moment the two stood facing toward one another, the fear within Ruth increasing dramatically, while the excitement within Adrien greatly intensifying.

His treasure stood there...right in front of him.

Ruth gasped as the stranger began moving toward her at a healthy pace, and then when he broke into a run, Ruth took no time to hesitate, for she knew that something like this would be predictable and sprinted from him like fish avoiding the shadow of a shark. She pumped her arms wildly, and flew into the first alley that she saw, for one alley's exit led into other streets. Sweat began to form on her forehead, her palms were now completely slick, and her heart thudded against her chest. It was not long before the stranger caught up to her, and she cried out in fear as the pounding of his boots became louder…

Ruth screamed.

His fingers had brushed hers.

As she rounded the corner, the stranger, came up suddenly beside her, and grabbed her arm, the mere grip upon her arm causing Ruth to shriek. The two stopped, Ruth tried to yank her arm from his, even using her other hand to try prying his fingers from her, and a desperate struggle began.

"Let me go!" she screamed as the stranger managed to utilize his other hand to grab her, _"Please!"_

Adrien tightened his grip around her arm and forcefully pulled her to him, and he pulled her into the darkness of the alleyway, cursing as she struggled to loosen his grip upon her.

Ruth eventually felt almost drained of her energy, but she did not surrender quickly. She tried to kick him, elbow him, or even yank her arms from his grasp, but failed miserably. As the stranger gained more and more of a control over her, he began to pull her closer to him. Ruth immediately reacted, and with a final, forceful pull, managed to yank her arms from him.

She screamed as she bound for the exit of this intolerable darkness, and in the blinding darkness stumbled. The stranger easily leapt for her and in one sudden moment, her growing hope died as he snatched up the white linen of her blouse and yanked her back to him.

Ruth screamed, and the stranger did not resort to closing her mouth, but instead, as soon as he made sure she faced him, he struck her across the face. She fell to the ground in shock, gasping as a fiery pain sprung to her throbbing cheek. Ruth, sensing evident defeat, felt the sting of tears at the corners of her eyes. She struggled to keep her trembling arms, which were only support from falling onto the ground, as sturdy as she could as she strived to turn herself away from the face of potential death.

Adrien suddenly felt a sharp pang of guilt as the girl gently cried out in pain, but rediscovered his greedy motivations for turning to such brash actions, and hoisted her from the ground.

When Ruth finally came face to face with her attacker, she whimpered as the dark cloak that shielded his face rode up his waves of hair and revealed a pair of fierce, angry eyes, arousing such a fear within Ruth, that she burst into a horse sob. She looked into his eyes pleadingly, as if she could persuade him to free her with her desperate, frightful gaze.

Adrien pulled her so close to him, that in the darkness of alley, she could see his eyebrows pull further together to signal his rising fury.

"Do _not_ provoke me again, girl, because I swear to you," he seethed between clenched teeth, "if you attempt something like that again, I will not hesitate to do what you probably fear most of me. Is this understood?"

He ended this speech in such a terrifying tone, that Ruth nodded in a sort of daze as tears quietly made their way down her face. Adrien retrieved a pistol and proceeded to bring this arm around her waist, jamming the mouth of the weapon into her stomach as if to emphasize his seriousness. He then brought Ruth under a fold of his cloak, and pulled her toward him so that her cheek seemed to rest upon the crook of his arm. Completely spent of energy, Ruth almost willingly allowed her neck to wilt and lay on his chest, very slightly enjoying the time she had to calm herself – to contemplate what had just happened, as if trying to remember the details of a nightmare. She tried to savor the time she had before whatever this man had in store for her would no longer be a wicked plan developing within the endless depth of his mind, but a hellish reality.

Despite the warmth of cloak about her shoulders, and the steady rise and fall of the stranger's chest, there was no consistent lull of a movement or feeling to calm her, not when a mysterious, bleak future lay ahead.

Ruth could not control her sobs.

Adrien said or did nothing in response, knowing too well that it would only worsen things. He only continued walking through the deserted streets of the secluded district, holding her as if his life depended on her presence.

**Author's Note: I'm so sorry I haven't updated in quite a while, but it's just that my schoolwork has gotten in the way of my progress! Anyway, please review…reviews are very much appreciated! A big thanks to those who have reviewed!**


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